One of Those Days
by Autumn leaves
Summary: Seriously injured by an alien device, Sheppard is in trouble while the team is hunted by hostile aliens. Warning: Whumps galore! COMPLETED
1. Trouble

**One of Those Days**

By

Autumn Leaves

Rating: T (Gen)

Disclaimer: I don't own Stargate or its characters. Alas, they're not mine (sobs) and no profit is made from this. Only original story idea is mine.

Author's Note: Well, it's been a while since I've written anything here as other than RL taking over I've also been away. But then this story popped into my head and refused to leave me alone. This story is also filled with some serious Shep whump, so you've been warned. The only ship you'll find here is friendship. No slash.

-oOo-

**Chap 1: Trouble**

"Hey big guy, you feeling all right?" John asked, noticing that the Satedan was looking a little flushed. Ronon had also been scratching a lot lately, after they had arrived at PX35-2T4 and met some rather unfriendly natives that insisted that they leave immediately.

Ronon looked at him and scowled. "You don't feel itchy?" he asked, his right hand going to the armpit of his left arm, scratching furiously.

"Nope," came John's reply, looking at Teyla and Rodney. "Do any of you guys feel itchy?"

"Actually, I have been feeling rather … uncomfortable … lately," revealed Teyla as her hand moved to scratch her neck. "I also have a mild headache that does not seem to want to go away."

"Yeah, me too," the Satedan stated curtly.

Rodney instantly took a step away from the Athosian and Satedan. "No itch here," he quickly replied. "You don't think that Conan and Xena are coming down with some viral infection do you, Sheppard?" he asked worriedly. "Oh God, I hope it isn't infectious!"

John frowned. "I'm not sure, maybe. Okay guys, I say that we head back to the Stargate and get Beckett to check you two out. Besides I didn't like the way those natives looked at us; they seemed awfully reluctant to let us go. I wonder what that old woman said to them?"

Ronon suddenly stopped walking to glare behind them.

"What?" John asked, his P-90 coming up to scan the area. He felt the prickly feeling of danger even before the Satedan spoke.

"We're being followed," Ronon Dex observed. Out of everyone in the team, the Satedan's hearing was the sharpest. It must come with the territory of being a former runner and running from the wraith for seven years.

"Rod-ney?" Sheppard addressed the scientist with his inquiry.

"Already onto it," McKay replied as he took out the life signs detector and began scanning. "Crap! Ronon's right, we're—"

There was flash of movement from the corner of his eye. "Look out!" John cried out. He ran towards Rodney and pushed him out of the way. Unfortunately he wasn't fast enough and his body got in the way instead.

Something sharp slammed into his body, flinging him hard to the ground. Pain exploded in his side, stealing his breath away. Then Ronon was there, lifting him up. John heard the rattle of P-90s before the lights went out.

-oOo-

Upon awakening, the pain that struck John Sheppard was one that he had never experienced before. It felt worse than when he had an iratus bug stuck at the side of his neck (if that was even possible). Looking down, he saw that the alien projectile was still impaled in him. What worried him most was the fact that the alien projectile looked partially like a large plastic-type syringe but it was as thick and hard as a spear. Through the clear tube that was sticking into his bleeding side, he could see a blue liquid inside it that was slowly being pumped into him. John felt as if it was sizzling every nerve ending in his body. Red waves of torment invaded every millimetre of his being. He couldn't control the scream from forming at the base of his throat as it grew beyond his control seeking release. Suddenly a strong large hand grabbed him, covering his mouth, choking off the scream. Hot tears of pain pricked at the corner of his eyelids as his gaze desperately locked onto the Satedan's.

"Sheppard, you must remain silent. Any loud noise will reveal our position to the enemy," the low voice of Ronon whispered close to his ear. John immediately understood; he was grateful that his screams were muffled out by the large Satedan's hand. He didn't think that much time had passed since he lost consciousness, not if his team was still trying to hide from the hostile aliens. However, he could not stop himself from moving as his hand grasped the alien projectile that currently impaled his side. Warm blood seeped through his fingers, too much, it seemed. He wanted nothing more than to pull it out, to stop the hurt, to stop from losing his mind to the agony that sheared through all the pain receptors of his brain.

A smaller, gentler hand pushed his frantic hands away. "I am sorry, John, but I cannot allow you to extract the device. It might have hit a blood vessel and if you pull it out, you might bleed to death," Teyla Emmagan whispered urgently to his ear.

"Oh God, this really looks bad—" he heard Rodney's horror-stricken voice say in the background. "I think I'm going to be sick—" A little while later, there was the sound of soft retching.

"Rodney, please calm down and hand me that med-kit," Teyla's voice interjected softly. "Colonel Sheppard hasn't been injured that long ago but already his body burns unnaturally with fever." She turned back to him. "You are strong, John; I know that you can fight it."

He struggled, his eyes unable to focus on the members of his team gathered around him. A red haze now seemed to cover his vision. A strange roaring sounded in his ears, he barely heard and understood Teyla's words. He partially knew what the Athosian was saying but half the meaning was lost to him. The pain took over everything else and filled his entire world. Whatever that alien projectile was, it was doing something to him, expanding his pain, flooding his mind and body with an alien substance that was not meant for the human body. It hurt so much! He didn't think he could fight the agony that was overpowering him.

Perspiration broke out from his skin like a storm; his eyes desperately sought his team. Attempting to blink away the sweat that dropped into his eyes, his vision cleared slightly. He saw Rodney, Teyla and Ronon's worried faces gathered around him, holding him, centring him to the here and now. Yet, in the fading mists of his mind, he also knew that he had to keep silent, to rein in his cries of agony and he was glad that the Satedan's strength was there, covering his mouth, muffling out his screams for he didn't think he could stop the screams himself.

Suddenly his body started to convulse uncontrollably. Nausea churned through his gut, making him sick. His squeezed his eyes shut. Through the red haze of agony, he thought he heard Rodney whisper urgently to Teyla and Ronon, "Oh God! I think we're losing him! Sheppard, hold on! Just hang on, damn it!"

He was losing his mind to the pain, he longed for release, escape, even if his only avenue was through death. Anything was better than this! Suddenly, he felt a warm hand settle on his forearm, gripping it hard, lending him strength. Instinctively, he knew it was Rodney's. Then another smaller hand covered his fist in a firm grip, and he knew that Teyla was also there with him, trying to ride out the pain with him. A little later, he felt a strong yet gentle hand lift his convulsing body, enfold his chest protectively in an attempt to ease his uncontrollable shaking. Ronon! He knew that that was Ronon grounding him to this world.

Somehow, knowing that his team was around him, caring for him, desperately wanting to help him, enabled him to fight back. Their close proximity anchored him, their urgings for him to hold on, loaned him inner strength in his battle for survival. He wasn't alone in this; he had his team with him making sure that he wouldn't give up. Just knowing that they were there made all the difference. He couldn't let his team down; he refused to let his team down. He would fight for his life for all he was worth, they still needed him and he owed his team that much.

-oOo-

TBC

So, you like? Please tell me what you think.


	2. Side effects

Author's note: Thank you so much for the reviews! I wasn't sure whether people would like it but I'm so glad to hear that so many are enjoying it :) You guys sure know how to encourage me to update sooner! LOL. Hope this chapter pleases just as well. It gets a little dark for poor John.

-oOo-

**Chap 2: Side-effects**

The pain was overwhelming, John felt as if his blood was burning him alive from inside out. Whatever the alien device was doing to him, he was certain that it wasn't anything good; he wondered whether it wanted to cause him indescribable agony so as to drive him insane. It was getting exceedingly difficult to hang on to coherent thoughts as more of the drug seeped into his body. He was at the point where he was willing to risk the projectile's extraction and be damned with the consequences. He knew that he was caught between a rock and a hard place; and it literally sucked.

Nearby, he felt his team trying to lend him strength; it was the only solitary comfort in his world of pain. For their sake, he hung on, trying to do the right thing. For a second his eyes opened, moving frantically all over the place. He heard his name being called, not loudly, but it demanded his attention in a familiar, arrogant but urgent manner; it was something that he could never ignore. His wild gaze locked for a moment onto Rodney's frightened one; a rational part of his mind still registered Rodney's hand clutching his forearm tightly, lending comfort and strength as if saying '_I'm here, Sheppard! Tell me what to do!_'

His mouth opened and closed under Ronon's palm, desperate to get coherent words out instead of cries of pain. _Help me, Rodney! Do something to stop the pain! _His mind shrieked the words but to his dismay, no vocalised speech came out except another agonised scream as another wave of agony captured him. He was lost once more in his misery as he shut his eyes tightly, his back arching against Ronon's lap as the Satedan tried to hold him down.

Yet, Rodney must have understood the look that passed before them for in the swirling darkness, he heard muffled voices as the scientist suddenly hissed at Teyla, "Give him a shot of morphine, Teyla! I-I think Sheppard needs it for the pain!" Rodney's voice sounded as desperate as John felt.

The Athosian hesitated. "I do not think it is advisable Rodney! Dr Beckett warned me not to administer any morphine if there's evidence of unknown drugs in the body." Amidst the roar of blood pounding through his ears, John clearly heard the trepidation lacing Teyla's voice. John knew that the Athosian had been receiving emergency first aid lessons from Carson Beckett, but that would not be enough for her to deal with an emergency situation such as this. A small rational part of his mind recognised that Teyla wanted to do the right thing; the problem was that she wasn't qualified enough to know what it was. "We do not know what that liquid is doing to John, but it's more important to tend to his wound first."

"G-get… it… off!" Sheppard hissed.

"I'm sorry John, but you know that I cannot," replied Teyla encouraging. A gentle hand reached out to touch him on the shoulder before moving to the site of his wound. Her ministrations sent renewed eruptions of pain exploding through out his entire body, making the pain worse. He writhed trying to escape from Teyla, but Ronon still sheltered him firmly; one great arm clutching across his shoulder and chest, trying to keep his body still while offering comfort as the Athosian tried to examine his wound. He didn't know how much more he could take of this! The pain flared up again, what little ground he had won earlier quickly retreated. He was in indescribable agony. If it weren't for Ronon's hand over his mouth again, his screams would have alerted those hunting them of their location immediately.

John was beyond rational thought now; he fought and struggled against his team mates. Whatever the alien drug was doing to him, it was making the pain worse; it was better for it to be removed; better to bleed to death than to continue with this. He suddenly realised that the choice was his, not Teyla's. Although the Athosian was trying her best to save his life, she did not understand what he was going through.

He bucked and twisted, fought against Ronon's hold with all that he was worth. With one of the Satedan's hand over his mouth and the other trying to hold his body down, John somehow managed to grab the alien projectile with one hand, while pushing Teyla's hands away with the strength of the desperate. Consequences be damned it was now or never. With a jerk, he swiftly ripped the sharp projectile out of his body and flung it to one side. He hated what that damn alien contraption was doing to him with a passion.

"Oh God—" he heard Rodney's voice utter in shock.

For a brief instant, he felt overwhelming relief to no longer have the alien projectile inside his body, but it was only a brief respite. A second later, he felt as if he had made a terrible mistake when hot shearing agony erupted out from his wounded side like a large tidal wave ready to drown him. His insides felt as if they were being eaten alive. John opened his eyes, staring at nothing, his back arched again and his agonized screams struggled for release from the Satedan's hand that firmly covered his mouth. Despite the blood roaring through his ears he managed to hear Teyla's frantic voice speak, sounding close to panic.

"_Oh John, what have you done?!_ The ancestors help us; he is losing so much blood… Rodney! Quick, pass me those bandages! I'm going to have to bind his injury before he bleeds to death!"

"Here!" he heard Rodney's scared voice whisper amidst his hammering heart and gasping breaths. His eyes were now slammed tightly shut amidst tears of pain that leaked from the sides of his eyelids. Then Teyla's hands were on his body again, Ronon helped her lift his body as she got ready to wrap the bandage round his wounded site.

She paused for a second.

"What is it?" he heard Ronon asked in concern.

"His blood…" Teyla replied, her voice sounded slightly shocked. John stiffened wondering else could be wrong.

"Oh God, isn't it meant to be red?" Rodney gasped out the words. "Crap! This is bad!"

"Rodney!" Teyla hissed a warning. Rodney seemed to have caught her non-verbal message for he suddenly changed his song. "Oh, I was wrong. Ignore what I just said, Sheppard, it's nothing, nothing to worry about. You'll be fine, just fine, there nothing wrong with you that Beckett can't fix." He felt a hand move to pat him once on the shoulder.

However, Rodney's words didn't make John feel any better; it reminded him too much of Elizabeth's bad bedside manner when he had been infected by the iratus bug retrovirus. Teyla hands started moving swiftly again as she began wrapping the bandages firmly around his wounded side.

"I am so sorry, John," Teyla apologised, sounding close to tears that she was causing him unintentional hurt. "I am doing the best I can."

Sheppard gulped and nodded, his eyes still shut, not having the strength to reply. He understood; he wished he could comfort Teyla and tell her that it was okay, that he appreciated all the help that she was giving him. He hoped that she would understand. Ronon still held him securely, wrapping his arms over him like a bear-hug, lifting his body when Teyla needed him to.

"It'll be over soon," whispered Ronon softly, the former runner tried to reassure him. Sheppard nodded again, glad that he had the Satedan there to ensure that he would not unwittingly betray their presence to their enemy by making too much noise.

Clenching his right hand, his fingers dug painfully into the hard ground. A hand captured his fist, forcing his fingers open, offering clumsy support. Instinctively, his mind recognised that it was a hand of a friend, someone whom he trusted and he gripped the hand back in a fierce clutch, holding on to it as if his life depended on it. He heard a soft grunt of pain from the other but no complaints. He knew that he was gripping the other hand too hard, but he needed it in his battle against the overwhelming pain.

"Hang on, Sheppard," the familiar voice pleaded close to his ear. There was movement as if the person stretched to get something. A second later, he felt the pin prick of something cool hit his veins.

There was a gasp of shock. It came from Teyla. "Rodney! You should not have done that! We do not know how the morphine will react to the alien drug! Carson informed me about the dangers of it."

"We have no choice, Teyla! Sheppard … he needed something to counter the pain; I-I don't think he could last much longer without something to help him fight it. Sooner or later, probably sooner, knowing Sheppard's luck, his body will start shutting down. I might not be Carson, but I still recall enough from the courses that I took as an undergrad to know we would lose him anyway if we didn't try something," Rodney hissed back. "I-I believe that Sheppard would prefer taking the risk."

John wanted to nod, agreeing full heartedly with McKay. Sometimes the scientist amazed him and lived up to his full reputation of being a genius. Close above him, he also heard Ronon's voice whisper softly in agreement. "McKay's correct. Sheppard would want this."

_Thanks guys_, he wanted to say, but his body was too weak to utter the words. It took a few moments before he felt the effects of the morphine start to kick in, dulling out the pain, allowing his hammering heart to slow down from its rapid and erratic beats. He let out a shuddering breath of relief, his tensed body calming down considerably. He knew that it was only a temporary measure; it was not healing his wound in anyway but instead was placing his pain receptors into a soft pause mode. He sincerely hoped that it would be long enough for him to gather enough strength for the next battle against the pain.

With his thoughts more coherent now, he knew that his condition was also placing his team in danger. He needed to be silent, and so far it was only Ronon's hand over his mouth that had prevented him from revealing their position to their hunters. He needed them to do what was required if things became desperate. When he had gathered enough strength to speak, he whispered the words, "If I m-make … too much… n-noise, h-hit me..."

"What?" Rodney sounded shocked. The hand that was holding his removed itself suddenly. He felt surprised to discover that it belonged to Rodney. He knew that there would be fresh fingerprint bruises on the scientist's hand where he had clutched it too hard.

"I'm …a… l-liability… Better, if I-I'm… unconscious… Only w-way…" he stammered out. "W-won't … hold it… a-against you big guy." He knew that Ronon would know he meant him.

He opened his eyes to look at the members of his team. He frowned, for what he saw was not what he expected; when he looked at them he saw strange aura-like colours shimmering on Rodney, Teyla and Ronon's bodies. The colours fluctuated and flicked erratically whenever his blinked. The fluctuating images were making him feel slightly nauseas and dizzy. He saw Teyla and Rodney staring at him strangely as his frown deepened. He wondered if the alien drug was making him hallucinate.

"W-what?" A feeling of unexplained dread grew at the pit of his stomach. He recalled Rodney saying something about his blood.

"Er … what colour is your eyes, Sheppard?" Rodney asked oddly.

"You know that John has hazel eyes, Rodney," Teyla answered instead, but the Athosian was still staring at him in shock.

Ronon, who was still holding him in a kind of bear-hug, shifted John's weight slightly and tilted his head forward so that the Satedan could look into his eyes. John found himself staring dully into the Satedan's dark gaze. A small frown of concern formed in between the runner's brows. "What do you think this means?" Ronon asked.

Teyla and Rodney both shook their heads dumbly. John didn't like what he was hearing.

"W-what's… wrong... w-with… my eyes?" he asked again, his heart rate accelerating slightly.

Rodney looked at John, with an utterly bewildered look on his face. "You have blue eyes, Sheppard. Sapphire blue eyes! And it's down right creepy!"

-oOo-

TBC

Want more? Then you know what to do ;)


	3. Decisions, decisions

Author's note: Thanks again for the wonderful reviews guys! They're like fuel that feeds this fic making it grow each time :)

-oOo-

**Chap 3: Decisions, decisions**

John stared at his team in shock. "W-what?" he asked again, blinking as he tried to focus on the scientist and wishing that the annoying fluctuation of Rodney's aura would stop swirling around his friend like a mini whirlpool. Damn it! What was happening to him?! Was he losing it? He blinked and rubbed his eyes hoping to clear it up, but it was getting more difficult to ignore the strange swirls of lighted hues that shimmered on the bodies of his friends.

He didn't have time to ask any more questions when he felt Ronon stiffen suddenly.

"They come." The former runner informed them curtly as he carefully helped John sit up, making him clench his teeth with effort as a sharp pain tore at his side. Blinking back tears, he fought against the need to cry out. Perspiration immediately popped out from his brow and Sheppard had to close his eyes for a second to steady himself.

He felt a sympathetic hand briefly touch his upper arm. "You okay, John?" Teyla asked in concern.

"Yeah," he whispered raggedly, his head hanging down but he forced his eyes to open, rubbing them with his hand, then combing his unruly sweat filled hair with his fingers. When he looked up again, he saw his team looking at him as if they did not believe him. Worry lines marked their features and he knew that they were concerned about him making it. He tried to ignore the looks that they gave him as he held his bandaged wounded side tightly. "I say … we g-get … moving again … before we get … boxed in."

"John…" Teyla reached out to grip his other hand worriedly. "I do not know if moving you is the best thing right now."

Sheppard shook his head and squeezed his eyes shut again to stop the world from spinning. "No choice. Just…" he paused and took a hesitant swallow unsure whether this was the right decision but he said it anyway. "Just give me … another shot of … m-morphine. That should hold me … for … a while."

His team looked at each other; all knew that things must be really bad for him to ask for another shot so soon.

"Wait!" Rodney said suddenly. "What if I became the decoy?" He quickly put up a nervous hand when he saw all three members of his team looking at him as if he had just lost his mind. "Whoa, whoa! Wait a second, just hear me out! I mean maybe only for a while, just enough to lead them away until Sheppard is ready to be moved."

"_Really … bad … plan_, McKay!" John punctuated his words to emphasise his point. "Sorry … to burst your bubble, Rodney, but… you won't last … a second … out there.., not against so many."

"Oh…, okay," Rodney sounded relieved and disappointed at the same time.

"Sheppard's right, McKay," Ronon replied, though there was a hint of admiration in the Satedan's voice. "But it's a good plan. I should be the decoy instead, that way we won't need to move Sheppard."

John shook his head. "No, it might have … worked if we had better cover, but we're too … exposed out here. I think … they'll find us … regardless who tries to … lead them away, but … thanks for the offer, guys. Just…, give me ... the morphine shot, Teyla."

Teyla's frown deepened and the Athosian looked at him and whispered in a tensed voice. "I do not like this, John. We do not know how it will react with that alien fluid in you. Already we can all see that you are suffering from some disturbing side-effects. They could be caused by the alien drug or mixture with morphine, we are uncertain."

John nodded, understanding her concern, but they were out of options - short of Ronon knocking him out (but that would mean that the Satedan would also have to carry him, which would make it harder for Dex to fight and defend himself).

"I … know," he tried to reassure her, "but … the last shot … helped." He seemed a little out of breath and still had trouble speaking without pausing after a word or two. "I … need it now. Please, Teyla." He never begged in his life, and hoped that it wasn't considered as such.

The Athosian finally nodded, but she didn't look pleased as she took out another vial of morphine. There were only two more vials left. John saw Teyla looking at him anxiously but he gave her a nod to continue. With a sigh and a frown she quickly found a vein and injected the contents into John's arm. Sheppard closed his eyes and pursed his lips as he waited for the drug to take affect.

After a moment, he opened his eyes and said to Ronon, "Okay, I think … I'm ready to … move now. Help me… up, big guy!"

Dex didn't look too happy about it, but he swiftly complied with Sheppard's wishes. John only uttered a soft hiss of pain and he soon found himself back on his feet, one arm gripping tightly across the Satedan's shoulders for support. Ronon eyed him dubiously. "Should I carry you?"

Sheppard shook his head and managed a cocky grin. "No, not … this time." He scanned their surroundings, accessing the situation and knowing that they had lost some time; their pursuers were closing in on their position. "Just … support my weight, I'll be … fine. Besides, it'll … be easier for you to use your weapon … and me to use mine … this way."

Rodney handed him his weapon, and as he checked it over, John felt better knowing that he felt strong enough to remain on his feet and also fire his P-90 at the same time. The morphine had helped.

-oOo-

The armed natives came in fast and strong, yelling and screaming, reminding Sheppard of attacking red-indians in those old western movies that he enjoyed watching as a kid.

However, firing a P-90 when you had a hole at the side of your gut was pure torture. John quickly discovered this as each rattle of weapon's fire from his P-90 vibrated up his firing arm and headed straight to his wounded side like shooting daggers. Biting back a painful grimace, John held on tightly to Ronon's shoulders as they made their retreat from the attacking hostiles.

Rodney who was following closely behind them suddenly screamed out, "_The alien device! _We still need it!" John stared in horror as the scientist abruptly left their side to sprint back to where he had thrown it.

Adrenalin and fear for his wayward friend surged through him. "_Rodney! Get your ass back here!_" he screamed out the command, getting out the words, all in one breath. However, the effort caused waves of pain to hit him, making him stumble. Ronon instantly tightened his hold on him, bringing him up again.

"Provide … cover fire!" John managed to hiss out; his vision blurring as erratic colours once more began dancing before his vision. He saw Rodney's form in a swirling aura of bright red, dark blue and purple heading towards the alien projectile where John had tossed it earlier. Muddy auras of dark red and dull yellow swirled amongst the hostiles as they moved swiftly among the foliage, closing in on the scientist.

John and Ronon turned around to provide cover fire for Rodney, while Teyla sprinted back for the scientist.

As Rodney reached out to pick up the alien device, an arrow suddenly slammed into the centre of his outstretched hand. Rodney screamed in pain and horror, dropping to the ground, clutching his wrist where an arrow impaled his hand. Suddenly Teyla was there beside him, sweeping the area with her P-90, forcing the advancing natives to duck for cover once more while her attack combined with John and Ronon's rattle of weapons' fire.

"Come on Rodney!" she cried urgently, reaching out her free hand to pull him along, forcing Rodney to stand up and stumble back with her.

"Wait! Wait!" Rodney suddenly shouted, stubborn will power driving him forward as he pulled himself away from Teyla's grasp to desperately reach with his uninjured hand to grasp the alien device on the ground. Then they were off, sprinting back to where Ronon and John were waiting for them, providing weapons' fire for their retreat.

As Rodney reached safely within arm's length, John grabbed the scientist to look at the arrow that impaled his hand. His heart pounded with relief to discover that it was a normal arrow with no alien drug attached to it. He turned angrily to his friend, "_What the hell were you thinking, McKay?!_ That stunt that yours could have gotten you _killed!_"

Rodney didn't have a chance to answer for Ronon was quickly dragging John away, the Satedan's arm supporting the colonel as they retreated from the attacking natives. More hostiles arrived, shooting arrows, spears and bolts at them, yelling out at the top of their lungs alien battle cries. Spears, bolts and arrows struck on their left and right sides, and they found themselves heading towards a large golden coloured forest. The hostiles followed them into the forest but not for very long and pretty soon, their battle cries died down. Then, one by one, the natives abandoned the chase all together.

"Do … do you think we lost them?" Rodney gasped out painfully, his face unnaturally pale and screwed in a painful grimace as he held his hand with the arrow still jutting out from it. Slowly he sank to the ground, his butt hitting the ground with a soft thud.

"We didn't lose them, they left," the Satedan commented dryly.

John nodded in agreement. "We… were… being led… here… for some ... reason. Their shots … went wide … on purpose," he stammered, still trying to get his breath back.

"What? Why?" Rodney asked; his blue eyes wide with shock; pain and confusion evident on his features.

John shook his head. "Don't know," he replied wearily as he pushed himself off Ronon's shoulder and staggered towards McKay where Teyla was quickly getting out the med-kit to tend to the astrophysicist's wound.

"But they shot me! And you!" Rodney continued; his face turning slightly green as he stared wide eyed at the arrow stuck in the centre of his hand. "Oh God! I think I'm going to be sick!" Abruptly, he turned away from Teyla and did just that for the second time in less than an hour.

John's hand reached into his pocket, feeling for a powerbar, knowing that at the rate the scientist was going, he was going to have to replenish his blood sugar level soon. Finding one there, he removed his hand to clutch at his side, his body hutched over slightly from the pain.

"How is … he?" John asked the Athosian breathlessly, looking in concern at the arrow on Rodney's hand. His side was aching and throbbing painfully in beat with his pounding heart. But with the morphine still flowing through his system the pain was manageable. He blinked sweat out of his eyes and wiped his face with his hand. The auras on his friends were fluctuating wildly now with the swirling hues making him feel slightly nauseas. Watching McKay retch wasn't helping either. He took a deep breath, trying to get his equilibrium back while swallowing hard, his lips pursed in a tight line.

Teyla frowned. "I'll have to break the shaft and pull the rest of the arrow out." At her words, Rodney gave out a soft whimper amidst his vomiting.

"It'll be all right, Rodney," the Athosian said as she placed a sympathetic hand on the retching scientist's trembling shoulder.

-oOo-

TBC

Author's note: Little blue review button in the corner is saying "Click me!"


	4. Piece of cake

_Thank you for the reviews! There are spoilers for Season 2 "Conversion" in this chapter._

**Chap 4: Piece of Cake**

When the scientist finished heaving out what was left out of his stomach, Teyla gave him some aspirin tablets and a canteen of water to wash it down. As he returned the canteen to her, she smiled encouragingly and handed him a small stick to use.

"You might want to bite down onto this, Rodney," she said gently. She saw Rodney's eyes going to med-kit where the morphine was and looking at it longingly, but then his gaze skirted to John's pale form and he kept his mouth shut, accepting the stick without any arguments. His actions surprised her but she said nothing for she instinctively felt that somehow they needed to reserve the morphine for John.

"Shouldn't we give Rodney a shot of morphine before you do that?" John stated worriedly, asking for his friend what Rodney would not.

"No!" Rodney cried out suddenly. Teyla could see his lower lip trembling slightly in fear of what was to come but he remained stubborn in his insistent of no stronger pain killers. Once more his gaze shot towards Sheppard, this time lingering on the blood stains at the colonel's wounded side. "Sheppard, I think you need it more than me. It's… that is, I don't think this is serious enough to warrant it."

A small smile flinted across Teyla's lips and she felt a burning pride for Rodney, sometimes Rodney could be so brave, especially when it really mattered. He would complain venomously at the slightest injury, but when the situation was more serious or when he saw that others required help more than he did, there was a soft side in him that came into play. She still couldn't believe how brave he was to rush back in order to retrieve the alien device. She didn't really understand why Rodney wanted it but she knew that he did it to help John. Currently, he still clutched the device tightly in his hand.

The colonel was speechless for a moment, looking stunned and touched by the gesture at the same time, but then he frowned and said to Teyla, "Give him some morphine, Teyla."

Rodney opened his mouth to argue back, but instead of doing so he turned and shot pleading eyes to Teyla as if to say, '_You decide if I'm right in this!_'

Teyla sighed. She turned back and gently said to Sheppard, "Rodney's correct, John. While it's painful, Rodney's injury is not life threatening …" she paused, unwilling to speak out her concerns that she suspected that Sheppard's injury might be the latter case. She had seen how much blood John had lost and how much pain he was in. She seriously feared what the alien drug was doing to him. "Once the arrow is removed and the wound attended to, Rodney should be fine."

"Yes…, fine," Rodney wheezed out, squeezing his eyes tightly shut and trembling in fear slightly. He then placed the stick in his mouth and bit down hard.

"It's going to be all right, Rodney," Teyla said, moving her hand and patting the trembling scientist's back. "I'm just going to break the arrow stick, then pull it out. It'll be over soon."

John staggered towards Rodney and reached down a blood stained hand to grip Rodney's shoulder firmly, wearing a slight frown on his face. "You'll be fine, Rodney. Just hang in there, buddy." The pilot stood close to his friend offering support, his frame rigid with tension. When John remained standing, Teyla began to suspect that it was because the pilot couldn't bend down with his injury. Ronon also approached next to her and crouched down, taking McKay's arm and holding it steady as Teyla got ready to break the arrow shaft.

"Relax Rodney, it's a piece of cake. I've done it before heaps of times," claimed the Satedan.

Rodney bit out a somewhat hysterical laugh, muffled by the stick in his mouth at the Satedan's use of Earth's colloquialism and his claims. Teyla felt sure he remembered the time Ronon had removed an arrow through his ankle without so much of a thought and seemingly no effort. Yes, she knew that the wound would have caused Ronon considerable pain, but that the Satedan was just good at hiding it. Like Ronon, Teyla knew that John was also a master at hiding his pain, and when he couldn't, that was when they knew he was in serious trouble. She was still haunted by the memory of his muffled screams of agony when the alien projectile was in him. She shuddered and turned her attention back to Rodney.

She took a deep breath and placed a firm hold on the arrow's shaft; she said a silent prayer to the spirit of the ancestors that her actions would be guided true. "Ready Rodney?" she asked the scientist. He nodded his head, turned his head away and still keeping his eyes shut. She could feel him tensing, waiting for the inevitable. Steeling herself, she broke off the shaft swiftly. Rodney's entire body tensed immediately and he gave out a muffled shriek, then his body suddenly went limp and Teyla knew that he must have passed out. Ronon cradled Rodney's limp body against his chest, while John's hand still held onto the scientist's shoulder.

Ronon looked at her evenly and nodded. "It's better this way."

She understood, breathing hard, at least now Rodney won't feel any pain as she pulled out the rest of the arrow. This was something that she could deal with and the task was completed quickly without any problems. Normal arrow wounds she understood, after all, many of her people were hunters and arrow wounds were common among them. From her examination of the wound, it was a clean injury, hitting nothing vital. Probably it would leave a slight scar after it healed, but Teyla felt quite confident that there was no permanent damage. Carson should be able to attest to that when they got back to Atlantis.

It was only after she had cleaned and bandaged the scientist's hand that Rodney began to stir again. The Satedan gently laid him on the ground, while Teyla removed her jacket, rolled it up and placed it under Rodney's head.

"Rodney's going to be fine," Teyla said, smiling up at the two men and noticing their looks of relief.

Her gaze now turned back towards John, taking in his wounded side and his pale features. He was still standing, the only one among them who had not sat down to rest, but instead stared seeming off to space.

"Do you not want to take a seat, John?" she asked the question, feeling growing concern for the colonel. She knew that John was closed off regarding his feelings and not likely to open up and reveal how badly he was injured, much less how he felt about things. She knew that she had to keep an eye out on him.

Her concerned heightened when she noticed that he did not appear to hear her question. Instead, she saw his hand reach out as if to touch something, but there was nothing there to touch except empty air. For a moment, the colonel's face focused with a look of concentration staring at his upturned hand. Then she saw his unnatural blue eyes light up and his mouth curve upwards in excitement as he stared at his fingers with childlike wonder. _What are you seeing, John? s_he silently wondered.

"John?" she called his name again, dreading what could be wrong with him. His sapphire eyes had an intense look in them, and she thought she detected a strange sheen on his skin.

"John, are you all right? Can you hear me?" she asked again, the worry now blossoming to new heights.

Ronon who was crouched beside her was also staring at the pilot. "Sheppard?" he called out, but John remained silent, staring blankly at his extended hand, turning it around slowly and looking at it with fascination.

Rodney finally opened his eyes, making a groan. Teyla turned back towards the scientist. "How are you feeling Rodney?" she asked gently.

"What happened?" he asked, blinking owlishly up at her. Teyla smiled, "When I broke the arrow shaft you fainted," she replied.

"Passed out," Rodney muttered, lifting his bandaged hand and looking at Teyla's handiwork. There was a pained look on his face but all he said was, "Hmm, looks pretty good," which Teyla took as a compliment.

"Thank you, Rodney," she replied with a smile.

Rodney's gaze went to John who still standing in front of him looking at his fingers. "What's wrong with Sheppard?" he asked, frowning at the colonel.

Teyla shook her head, her earlier smile fading. "I do not know. I called his name but he does not answer."

Rodney frown deepened. "Have you tried shouting at him?" he asked. Without waiting for a response, he took a deep breath and yelled out, "_Helloooo?! _What's the matter with you Sheppard?! _Snap out of it! _This is _no _time for day dreaming!"

Suddenly John's eyes flickered and he blinked, his gaze turning to focus back on his team. She shuddered at seeing the unrecognisable sapphire blue eyes on the colonel's face. It felt terribly wrong somehow; he didn't look right with blue eyes and she missed seeing his warm hazel ones.

"Hey Rodney, feeling better?" John finally asked, wetting his lips with his tongue. It was a gesture that was familiar to Teyla and she knew that he usually did it when he was in pain or was troubled over something. She also wondered whether he was thirsty, as he had been perspiring a lot after his injury. She recalled that not so long ago he had been burning up with fever. She hadn't had a chance to check his temperature yet.

"How are you feeling, John?" she repeated the question. "Do you need a drink?" She lifted the canteen and handed it to him. She realised that she was feeling rather warm herself and that she still had a slight headache. She reminded herself to take some aspirin tablets after she was certain that John was okay.

He stared at the canteen but didn't make a move to take it. She sensed that John was going through something that she did not quite understand. She remembered the time when they had almost lost him to the iratus bug retrovirus. He had frightened her then, but at the same time, he badly needed protection from himself as he was taken over by the effects of the retrovirus. Within a few days, she saw him desperately fight for his humanity as it was slowly stripped away from him. Elizabeth had told her what John had said to her in his moments of lucidity; how he wanted her to kill him rather than risk hurting those whom he cared about. He knew he was turning dangerous and what was left of him was still trying to save his people if he couldn't save himself. Teyla knew that John Sheppard had a noble spirit; he was a leader who was willing to sacrifice his life for his people. He never left anyone behind and he always lived by that code that he set for himself. To Teyla, this was a sign of a great leader. It was why she had been willing to leave her people to join the Atlanteans in their battle against the wraith.

Staring at Sheppard now, reminded her of John during the last stages of his transformation when they were down on the bug planet. He had been so quiet, so silent and he did not speak a word. It was as if his mind was already gone. But yet, he had surprised her and the team when he completed the task that was expected of him. She hoped that John was not experiencing something similar. She hoped that the colonel wasn't changing into something that he couldn't control. An itch formed on her neck and her arms, which she unconsciously moved to scratch.

But even as she watched him, she saw him gather himself together, bringing his attention back to the present. He blinked and rubbed his eyes tiredly with his thumb and third finger, pausing as they reached the bridge of his nose. Then his fingers went to the side of his forehead, massaging it as if it pained him. Finally, he sighed and nodded, looking at her. Teyla wasn't sure whether it was to indicate that he was all right or that he was thirsty. But as he moved, stretching out his hand for the canteen, the effort seemed too much for him. With a groan, he stumbled, his legs finally giving out under him.

-oOo-

TBC

_Please review._


	5. Fireflies

Author's note: Thanks a lot for the reviews, they're real motivators! This chapter is from John's POV, revealing what John was experiencing after Rodney's wound was treated, as it's relevant to the story line.

-oOo-

**Chap 5: Fireflies**

After hearing from Teyla that Rodney was going to be all right, John's attention was lost to the strange auras and colours that swirled around him. They dragged his attention away from the present to the mystical world that only he seemed able to see. Soon, he forgot all about the terrible pain that radiated dully at his side or the uneasy feeling that he was burning from inside out – his attention became lost to the mysterious world of luminous hues.

Every living thing around him seemed to generate auras that he had never seen before – from Rodney, Teyla and Ronon to the tall trees, plants and foliage surrounding them in the small clearing overgrown with long prairie-like grass that they were standing in. While his team radiated brighter and clearer hues, a mixture of red, blue, purple, aqua and brown, the plant life were dimmer auras of pale yellow and bright green. Even the every air in this wooded area seemed to sparkle with tiny dots of silver blue lights like tiny lighted fireflies. He reached out a hand, holding it up in front of his face, fascinated by it all. Instinctively, he didn't know how he did it - he called the flying lights to his hand. There was a soft energy buzz in his ears almost like static electricity and to his amazement a cluster of silver blue lights flew towards his open palm, gathering around his outstretched fingers. He turned his hand around, amazed at the sight of tiny energised sparks dancing playfully at his finger tips. He smiled, feeling gentle warmth in the sparkling lights. He didn't know how long he had been staring at them when suddenly an acerbic voice cut through his thoughts, shattering his trace-like state like a hot, burning knife.

"_Helloooo?! _What's the matter with you Sheppard?! _Snap out of it! _This is _no _time for day dreaming!"

_Rodney! _Instantly the tiny silver blue dots of light scattered and disappeared back into the surrounding.

He blinked and saw Rodney, Teyla and Ronon staring at him with looks of concern written on their faces. At least, he thought they were looks of concern, for it was getting difficult to tell amidst the swirling auras that now shone on them. However, worry about the scientist and the situation at hand reinserted itself. Focused back on the present, he once again felt his physical body's pain and weariness hit him like a tidal wave, threatening to overwhelm him as they assaulted his senses.

Through his pain, he asked, "Hey Rodney, feeling better?" Speaking almost felt like an effort for him as if his time mesmerised by the lights had taken something out from him. He felt hot, uncomfortably hot, and the back of his throat raged with a thirst that he had never experienced before; the wound at his side also throbbed painfully with the beat of his heart. He licked his dry lips with his tongue hoping to bring some moisture on them. As if from faraway, he heard Teyla ask how he was feeling; he felt confused and disorientated and he couldn't remember whether Rodney had answered his question or not.

"Do you need a drink?" Teyla asked him. He could not miss the anxiety that he heard in her voice. He stared at the canteen that the young woman offered him. He wanted to reach for it, for his thirst was overwhelming, but for the moment, he felt too exhausted, too weary to do so. He blinked and rubbed his eyes with his thumb and middle finger, bringing them together at the bridge of his nose. He was burning up and his head throbbed terribly. His fingers moved to the side of his forehead, rubbing at it, trying to ease the discomfort there. Finally, he sighed and nodded. Teyla, he saw through the swirl of colours, was getting worried. He tried to reach out for the canteen when suddenly the ground tilted and his legs folded under him.

As if by magic, Ronon was by his side, catching him before he felt flat on his face. "I got you, Sheppard," the big guy grunted as he gently lowered him to the ground. _Thanks Ronon_, he wanted to say but he felt too exhausted to do so. However, he knew that the Satedan understood. With Ronon supporting him, John thought he detected a slight tremble in the Satedan's grip and that Dex appeared to be breathing a little harder than usual. He turned to look questioningly at the Satedan, but Ronon had already left his side, his hands moving to scratch under his armpits, his face and other various parts of his body as he walked away to check out their surroundings.

Then Teyla was by his side, placing the canteen close to his lips, the stopper already opened and ready for use. "Here, drink this," she said gently. She must have guessed that he was feeling too weary and weak to drink it on his own accord for she placed a supportive hand behind his neck and tilted his head slightly backwards while she poured blessedly cool water down his throat. He gulped down a large shallow, but the liquid ended up going down the wrong way and he choked, sending eruptions of pain shooting from the side of his gut as he started to cough.

"Easy, Sheppard, not so fast," he heard Teyla say anxiously, as her hand moved to tap him on the back. Her presence was comforting, but he sensed her fear for him.

He nodded, and managed to gasp out "I'm okay," amidst of his bout of coughing.

At his words, Rodney uttered in a sarcastic tone, "Humph, right, we believe you! Just like I'm _fine _after having a _freakin' arrow _stuck and extracted from my friggin' _hand!_"

"You _will _be fine, Rodney," Teyla turned around and interjected with a smile.

Rodney's words however caused a flood of anger to rush through his veins. "At least… you're still… _alive_, Rodney!" John retorted back, his eyes watering and his chest burning, but the fuel of emotion loaned him strength. "You could have … gotten yourself and Teyla … _killed _pulling a stupid stunt … like that!" he shouted, recalling his own fear at seeing the scientist dash foolishly back for the alien projectile. In his mind, Rodney shouldn't have risked his life, not over the alien projectile, not over him. Atlantis couldn't afford to lose the Head of the Science Department.

Rodney's head whipped up at his accusation, his blue eyes unreadable as he stared levelly back at John. "You _needed _it for Beckett to figure out what's wrong with you! Cos in case you haven't noticed, Sheppard, your eyes are _not _the only thing wrong with you now, you're also starting to _glow _slightly!"

Rodney's words shut John up. Feeling puzzled, he brought his hands before his face and noticed for the first time that McKay was right, there was now a soft golden glow surrounding his skin. And the most disturbing part was that this time it wasn't a hallucination, this time, his team could see it too.

-oOo-

TBC

With each progressive update, reviews appear to be shrinking, indicating that perhaps most readers might not be enjoying where this is heading. Therefore, I'm thinking to cut down what I originally planned to end this tale sooner. While the team might not get put through the ringer as much, I promise that there'll still be enough whumps and action (and resolution of what's happening to John) for all. Hopefully, you guys will still find it exciting and enjoyable enough to let me know what you think :o)

If this story didn't live up to your expectations, please bear in mind that it's only my second attempt at fanfic and I'm still relatively new at this, so please forgive me! Once again thank you all who gave concrits (which have been noted and taken on board where the situation allows) and all those who dropped lovely reviews or reminded me to update! You guys are the best and it's all appreciated! Hugs all round. :o)

P.S: I attempted to give more description of the surroundings, so hopefully that helped a little with the visualisation of the place.


	6. Auras

Author's note: Thank you everyone for your comments, const crits, suggestions and advice :o) To all reviewers thank you, I loved reading all your comments; they're very motivating and mean a lot. :o) I got inspired, so here's an early update just for ya.

**Chap 6: Auras**

Ronon came striding back, having heard what Rodney said, wanting to see for himself the change in Sheppard. At his arrival, Satedan just gave him a fierce grin before saying, "You look odd, Sheppard."

"Way… to make… a guy feel better, Ronon," John retorted, feeling seriously uncomfortable being stared at by his team. Now he knew what a lab rat felt like. What the heck had that alien device done to him?

"Are you feeling better, John?" Teyla asked as she dabbed a soft damp cloth on his fevered brow. He turned his attention back to the Athosian and saw that she looked uncomfortable as his gaze met hers.

"That… bad, huh?" he acknowledged with a worried frown.

Teyla attempted a reassuring smile, but he could see that her smile did not reach her eyes. "Only that you look a little … odd, John. I have not seen you with sapphire blue eyes before nor have I seen you emitting a golden glow. It is … disturbing to say the least."

Rodney suddenly looked up startled as an idea struck him. "Sheppard! You're not ascending are you?"

"No, Rodney." John gave the scientist an annoyed look. "I don't think… my eyes would turn blue… if that was happening."

"Huh, well it was just a theory," Rodney replied, jutting his lower chin forward. "At least this time you're not turning into a bug."

John made a face. "Please… don't remind me. I hate bugs." Weariness laced his voice.

Teyla smiled as she dabbed the damp cloth on John's brow again. A stray locket of hair fell across on his forehead and as Teyla moved a finger to brush it away, her finger made contact with his skin. "Ouch!" she cried out in shock.

"What! What's the matter?!" Rodney exclaimed nervously looking at Teyla as she examined her finger.

"You, okay… Teyla?" John asked, feeling concerned and not liking the sound of this, wondering what he had inadvertently done now.

Teyla looked down at her finger then up at John again. Her eyes had a look of astonishment in them. "Yes, I'm fine, John. I just felt a small shock, like static electricity…."

At her words, Rodney instantly reached out and poked the side of John's face with his index finger.

"Ow!!" both guys stated in unison; John, because Rodney had jabbed his finger at the side of his face a little too hard, and Rodney, because a little blue electrical spark shot out to his finger as soon as he touched the pilot's cheek.

Rodney's eyes widened as he nursed his index finger. "Geez, Sheppard! I think you're turning into - " he paused, and John could almost hear his friend's mind ticking over, obviously searching for the right words, "- the _Human Torch _or something! Hey, is there any comic book superhero whose superpowers are electricity?"

"Superhero? You think I'm… turning into something… like… Synapse or Dynamo? Now that'll be kinda… cool," John stated, trying to stop anxiety and panic from forming as he told himself that he was going to be all right.

"Really?" Rodney asked, looking curious now. "Hmm, not familiar. Never heard of them."

Ronon was about to bend down and touch Sheppard too, but John quickly raised his hand and waved him off. "Ronon stay! No … more … pokes, please!"

Teyla frowned. "What is happening to you, John?" she wondered. She wanted to place her hand on his shoulder to comfort him but then thought better of it.

John shook his head. "Don't know. But … something _is_… happening."

Rodney's earlier comments still disturbed him. He remembered the last time he had accidentally received Beckett's retrovirus. Turning into a life-sized version of the Pegasus' bug-man wasn't something that he wanted to experience again. But this time, he felt certain that he wasn't turning into a bug, perhaps something else but definitely not a bug. Whatever the case, he personally preferred remaining just plain ol' Lt Colonel John Sheppard – your average Joe except that he had the ATA gene that allowed him to fly puddle jumpers and activate Ancient devices, which was way cool.

"Actually … there's something else … I have to tell you guys..."

John fixed his gaze on his team. As he did so, he paid particular attention to the swirling colours that radiated within and around them. The longer he stared at the hues, the more prevalent they became. Ronon, he noticed, radiated of mainly red and brown hues; Teyla, orange, red and aqua; and Rodney, a mixture of dark blue, dark purple and some red. However, scattered among them were small electrical sparks like flying black dust or fleas moving about here and there like a group of tiny insects. They appeared mainly in Teyla and Ronon. Rodney didn't appear to have any of the black dots on him. He wondered what they were if anything at all.

Caught up at looking at the strange auras, he stared in fascination at a particular spot of black dots clustered on the left side of Teyla's neck, watching as they expanded and shrank slightly almost like a living, breathing entity. When they expanded larger than normal, Teyla suddenly frowned and lifted her hand and began to scratch at the same spot where they were situated. Her actions caused the black swarm to scatter about, merging with the other coloured auras in her body before they shimmered and began to cluster on other parts of her body. One larger cluster now formed at the base of her forearm, and as soon as it expanded, Teyla's hand moved to scratch at it as if on cue. Looking closer, he blinked his eyes, trying to see how Teyla would normally look without the strange hues radiating on her. After much concentration, which brought on a pounding headache, his vision cleared and he spotted small red rashes on the Athosian's skin.

"_Pegasus galaxy calling Sheppard!_" he heard Rodney's loud voice suddenly breaking into his thoughts again.

"Rodney?" He blinked and abruptly became aware that McKay was waving his blue and purple shimmering aura hand before his face. Stunned to discover that he had actually spaced out there for a moment, he realised that he hadn't heard a word of what had been said to him. Now the rest of his team were looking at him oddly with worry lines clearly etched on their faces. They must be thinking that he was going nuts.

"You were saying something, Sheppard?" Rodney reminded him. "First you said that you had something to tell us than you decided to fly off to la-la land! There's something seriously wrong here. I say the sooner we get you checked out by Beckett the better!"

"John?" he heard Teyla ask. "Why were you staring at me like that?"

There was movement behind him and glancing around, John saw Ronon scratching again under his left armpit. As he suspected, he saw a particular large group of shimmering black dust gathered there. In fact, there appeared to be more of the black dust particles on Ronon than on Teyla. Worry weighed him down and he brought his gaze back to McKay again, glad to see that there was still no black dust sparks on the scientist at least.

He turned his gaze back towards Rodney and Teyla. "You don't see that?"

Puzzled frowns greeted him. "See what?" Rodney finally asked impatiently.

"The auras, the hues and colours - surrounding all of you. Can't you see them? And … what about the black dusts … scattered on Teyla and Ronon? Don't you see them?"

"Sheppard, what the heck are you talking about?" Rodney snapped. "Are you sure you're feeling all right? Hang on, don't answer that! Of course, you're not feeling all right. You've been stabbed and injected by some alien device, your hazel eyes have turned blue and you're now becoming a Sheppard shaped flashlight, or worse yet, a human glow worm! And I ask what could be wrong?" He rolled his eyes in a dramatic manner and said extravagantly. "Why am I wasting my breath asking you that question? That's it…! You're obviously hallucinating!"

"Rodney!" Teyla shot the scientist a chiding look. John smiled; it was so like Teyla to play the role of the peace-maker.

Teyla turned back to face him, smiling at John gently as she said in a reassuring manner. "We don't see anything, John. Only you have the glow on you. We see no 'colours' or 'auras' around us, as you put it."

John shook his head, certain that what he saw was more than a hallucination.

"No, Teyla. At first I thought so myself, but I think that something else is happening here. Just…, please try to have an open mind guys and trust me."

Taking a deep breath, he told his team what he saw.

-oOo-

TBC

For those who mentioned about Shep turning into a flashlight and a glow worm, they were really great that I had to borrow them as I can so hear Rodney saying them! lol ;-D Thanks again.


	7. Unknown Enemy

**Chap 7: Unknown Enemy**

Rodney looked at John not knowing what to think. Was Sheppard simply hallucinating or was there something more sinister involved here? Yet, John had asked them to trust him. If Sheppard hadn't been so seriously injured that he had to have two morphine shots in less than an hour, and he hadn't been injected by some freaky alien chemical that was obviously doing something nasty to him, Rodney would have trusted Sheppard without a doubt. There would have been no consideration or analyses involved – it would have been instantaneous. However, now he had to ask himself the question, could he trust Sheppard? He looked at the Colonel seeing unfamiliar blue eyes in place of hazel ones and he shuddered slightly at the strangeness of it. Sheppard looked very different staring at him with piercing blue eyes that it was making it difficult for him to read the guy.

He liked to think that they were friends, close friends, in fact, but after three years of being in Sheppard's team, he still didn't know much about Sheppard's family or why he always wore that black wristband on his hand. Sheppard never spoke about them and Rodney never really asked. If the man wanted to speak about it, he would have done so by now so it wasn't any of Rodney's business anyway – that was how Rodney saw it. But despite it, the geek and the flyboy had somehow become friends, crazy as that may sound.

So the question now was whether to trust what the Colonel saw. _Trust me_, Sheppard had said. Rodney recalled all too vividly how he had once asked Sheppard that same favour. His friend had obliged and even fought for him when Elizabeth hadn't agreed with Rodney to continue the tests at Doranda. However that trust had almost gotten both of them killed. Blowing up almost three-quarters of a solar system wasn't one of his greatest moments but Rodney was well aware that the fault lay entirely at his door not Sheppard's. In fact, it was Sheppard who had hauled his ass out of there, convincing him to press the eject button to his research experiment by his analogy of those test pilots who didn't know how to quit when their planes were falling out of the sky. He had trusted Sheppard then, more so because he recognised that John knew what he was talking about. That trust had saved his life. So now, there was no question about it, he would trust Sheppard - injured or not, John Sheppard was still his friend and he had yet to proof himself unworthy of that trust. Even if he did, Rodney knew that he would forgive him as Sheppard had done once for him. He could do no less. Not after what they had been through together.

Rodney was also uncomfortably aware that even now, on this godforsaken planet, it was Sheppard's actions that had saved his life. If Sheppard hadn't pushed him out of the way and placed his body in the path of the alien projectile, it would have been Rodney lying there seriously injured with a hole at the side of his gut and changing into who knows what. His wounded hand pulsed painfully but Rodney knew that his injury was nothing in comparison to Sheppard's wound. He saw the amount of pain that the Colonel was in, and frankly he never wanted to witness that again. Subconsciously, he knew that Sheppard was the glue that held the team together. Without John Sheppard all of them wouldn't be here. He was the one who had chosen Rodney, Teyla and Ronon to join the team; he was the one who interacted with all of them, bringing them together by inviting them to movie nights and team lunches and outings. He would drag Rodney's ass away from his lab experiments, ensuring that he interacted with the other two members of his team even though the scientist was uncomfortable to do so at the beginning.

In his easy-going, lay-back manner, Sheppard had somehow ensured that his team interacted and became friends, and as friendships formed so did caring for one another. Difficult as it was to believe, Rodney soon found himself thinking of his team mates as his surrogate family. They cared, protected, trusted and looked out for one another just as a real family did. John Sheppard had taught them that and they could do no less for Sheppard than to trust him back.

However, Rodney knew that he had waited too long for his reply when he saw a hurt look flint across the pilot's eyes at their moment of silence. Wanting to ease that hurt and make up for it, he hurriedly replied, "I trust you, Sheppard, I mean, we _all _trust you." Perhaps it was presumptuous of him to speak for Teyla and Ronon but in this he felt that he was right and he had to let Sheppard know that the team was with him one hundred percent. That the team still believed in him. He felt that whatever changes Sheppard was going through at the moment, he needed that. From the corner of his eye, he saw both Teyla and Ronon nodding in agreement with his words. Rodney smiled, feeling suddenly proud of himself.

He mulled over what John told him and frowned worriedly. "But if what you say is true, then what should we do? Are these black dusts contagious?" Rodney shuddered at the thought and quickly placed a clean handkerchief over his nose and mouth, while he watched Teyla and Ronon warily. He really hated catching any contagion from the Pegasus galaxy and the thought of it freaked him out. His next words sounded slightly muffled as he gasped in horror, "Oh God! I think I see spots on them!"

He narrowed his gaze and looked closer, recognising something familiar about them. "They look somewhat similar to the rashes that some of the villagers had!" he exclaimed. "Crap! If that's the case, then it's very likely they're infectious! It could be the reason why they didn't want us there in the first place and why that crazy old woman threw that white powder at us when we first arrived!"

John frowned, and Rodney wasn't sure whether it was because he was in pain or because he was concerned about Teyla and Ronon. Knowing Sheppard, it was probably both.

"You sure about that, Rodney?" John finally asked; sapphire blue eyes staring at him intensely.

Rodney looked at his friend with the handkerchief still covering his nose and mouth, and nodded. At the same time, he wondered whether Sheppard's blue eyes were turning luminous – it certainly looked like it and it disturbed him greatly. He blinked. "_Of course I am!_ While you guys were busy pointing guns and weapons at each other, I was busy noticing other more important stuff like that!" His nose suddenly itched and as he moved to scratch it with his handkerchief, Rodney suddenly felt an icy grip of fear clutch his gut. He forced down a dry swallow. "Sheppard, you sure you don't you see any of the black dusts on me?"

He saw John studying him once more before the pilot shook his head. "No, Rodney. I told you, you're clean." Sheppard's voice sounded tired and mildly annoyed.

"Oh good, that's good." He placed the handkerchief back in his pocket and quickly took out some sunscreen lotion that he always kept close at hand and began applying a generous amount on his face and hands. The sun was pretty intense on this world and he needed to protect his delicate skin from sunburn. Who knows perhaps it might even prevent those nasty alien germs from infecting him. "You _will _tell me if you start seeing any black dust appearing on me, won't you?"

"And watch you freak out?" he heard Sheppard mutter sarcastically under his breath. "Sure thing, Rodney."

"Hey! What's that supposed to mean?" the scientist snapped back, his lower chin jutting forward in indignation but John had already turned his attention back to Teyla and Ronon.

"How are you guys feeling?"

Teyla and Ronon looked at each other, Ronon shrugged his shoulders and Teyla gave John a wane smile. "I do not feel as you would say, 'a hundred percent' but these rashes are getting worse and more uncomfortable. I believe that my headache is also getting worse."

"Same here," Ronon replied.

John nodded, tried to move and grimaced, hissing back a grunt of pain. "Well…," he panted slightly, "I guess the sooner we get our asses back to Atlantis and get you two guys checked out by Beckett, the better."

"I second that! But Carson really needs to look at you first, Sheppard," Rodney added.

"We have a problem," Ronon stated enigmatically. For the first time, Rodney noticed that the tall Satedan appeared slightly flushed as if he had a fever.

"What? Why?" Rodney asked, not liking the sound of that nor the fact that Conan wasn't looking too good at present.

Dex looked grim as he brushed a hand across his sweaty forehead. "I did a perimeter check; the natives have not left but have stationed themselves just outside this forest, waiting and watching."

"They're making sure that we don't leave?" Teyla asked with a frown, her hand moved to scratch the rash on her neck again.

Ronon nodded.

"They want us here," observed John, his lips pursing together into a tight, worried line. The news just kept getting better. Rodney could see the pain in Sheppard's eyes and the sheen of sweat on his skin. The golden glow on the pilot also appeared to be getting stronger. Sheppard didn't look well at all and Rodney's worry grew for all his team mates. It looked like out of everyone here, he was the healthiest one, despite the hole in his painfully throbbing hand that probably was getting infected right about now. With his uninjured hand, he carefully placed the alien device in his vest pocket and zipped it up.

"I don't like this. Why do they want us here? I mean, what did we ever do to them? We didn't do anything wrong, did we?" Rodney asked as he stared at his friends questioningly.

Teyla shook her head, her hand moving to scratch her lap. "Perhaps by stepping into their village, we unintentionally broke some of their laws?" she hazarded a guess.

Rodney stared at her as he recalled when they had first arrived at the village.

-oOo-

It was a large village, clustered with round wooden huts woven closely together in a spiral shape with lots of bamboo-like shoots in place. At the front of the village, stood a large oval-shaped stone fountain. Many of the village children were playing in and around it when John and his team arrived. However, as soon as the newcomers were spotted, the children left their play and went running and screaming to their parents, pointing at John and his team as if they were some sort of monsters. Such a reaction made them uneasy and before they could explain themselves, they found themselves surrounded by a group of armed natives aiming swords, crossbows and spears at them. Then a crazy old woman, wearing an odd ridiculous looking headpiece of deer-like antlers on her head, with her white hair appropriately tied together in a bun, approached them. She was clothed in a shabby dress that seemed patched together by different animal hides that went down just below her knees, and she wore a tattered red shawl on her skinny shoulders. She stared at them for a moment before moving around as if to sniff them. There were craggy lines of her face, like canyons that dipped and rose telling a tale of their own. She looked more than a hundred years old, but Rodney doubted that she was really that ancient.

"Hi there, I'm Colonel John Sheppard, that's Dr Rodney McKay, Teyla Emmagan and Ronon Dex, we come in peace," John greeted her - giving her one of his charming boyish smile that Rodney knew most women easily fell for. However, to Rodney's surprise, the old woman barely gave the Colonel a glance as her hands whipped out and she threw some powdery white dust all over the four of them and began to chant some crazy alien words loudly while dancing around them.

Rodney's reaction had been instantaneous as he shouted out an indignant "Hey!" while John took a step back, shaking his head and wiping the dust out from his dark and spiky hair. Meanwhile Teyla and Ronon started to sneeze simultaneously. Rodney had been pleasantly surprised to discover that he wasn't the one sneezing (usually he would be the first candidate for it) but this time he didn't seem affected by it, unlike poor Teyla and Ronon who had obviously breathed in some of the white dust that went down the wrong way. However, at each sneeze, the crowd gathered around them swayed and whispered amongst themselves uneasily. More armed villagers arrived, looking grim and unfriendly as if they were about to move in and attack them at any instance. The old woman suddenly stopped her chanting and shouted a command in an alien language to the villagers. There were uneasy murmurings, but the armed group seemed to ease back slightly. At this stage, Rodney noticed that many of the villagers appeared to be scratching; some had obvious rashes on them while other just scratched at some unseen itch. He was about to tell Sheppard about it when the old woman turned around and approached them again.

Wild grey eyes regarded John and his team, making them uneasy. "You are strangers here?" she questioned them in a foreign accent.

John nodded. "Yes," he replied, giving her his best Sheppard smile as he lowered his P-90 slightly.

"We mean you and your people no harm, we are explorers, traders," Teyla added, her voice sounding soft, friendly and diplomatic.

Rodney saw that the old woman ignored the Athosian altogether as if Teyla didn't exist. In fact, the old woman's entire stance seemed to emanate disdain for Teyla and Ronon. Her gaze instead shot towards John, appraising him with what Rodney recognised as curiosity mixed with a hint of awe and respect. Her gawk rested on Sheppard for what seemed like an eternity that it even made the Colonel uncomfortable until he finally had enough and commented, "Like what you see?" She did not reply but instead shifted her stare to Rodney, and the scientist found himself caught by her murky gaze. Rodney did not enjoy being under her scrutiny – she seemed foreboding and mysterious. He felt as if this old woman had dark secrets that only she knew about and she wasn't about to impart any of it to them. He noticed that Sheppard, Teyla and Ronon had their weapons armed and ready as threatening looks from the restless crowd were aimed at them again. Each Atlantian took a defensive stance, gathering closer towards Rodney, knowing that if a fight started, he was their weakest link. While he hated to admit it, Rodney was well aware that fighting and battles with armed and angry natives really wasn't his forte. His scientific brilliance had better use than that.

If they were to open fire, Rodney knew that it would be a blood bath. It was not something that any of them wanted. Besides, with the number of armed villagers pointing their weapons at them, he seriously doubted that all of them would be able to get out of that village alive much less scratch-free. Yet, Rodney thought that he detected not only malice from these natives but fear as well. They actually looked frightened, a reaction that puzzled him somewhat. However, he was certain that Sheppard who was standing beside him sensed it as well. When it looked that the situation was turning out to be a stalemate, the old woman's eyes narrowed. Rodney saw her gaze skirting once more towards him and then back towards Sheppard. She saw something in them, what it was, Rodney wasn't certain but it was enough to make him feel decisively uneasy, making him take a step closer towards his team mates. The old woman gave them a firm nod as if coming to a decision before turning back to her people and shouting something at them in her alien tongue. Looks of surprise crossed the natives' features and weapons were reluctantly lowered. Slowly a path appeared before them as the villagers moved away to allow Sheppard and his team access out of their village.

"Go now! Leave immediately! You are not welcomed here!" the old woman suddenly declared.

"But…" Teyla made as if to speak, obviously puzzled.

Rodney however was just glad that they had been allowed to leave. He didn't like it there and he preferred not to look the gift horse in the mouth.

Sheppard seemed to agree with him for he curtly said, "Leave it, Teyla. We're leaving." The pilot gave the old woman a respectful nod and a tiny farewell smile. Teyla and Ronon followed suit with Rodney tagging close behind them. The last sight the scientist had of the village was seeing restless armed natives staring at them as they made their way out from the village and headed back to the Stargate. Twenty minutes later, they were attacked.

-oOo-

John's team looked at him, and for an instance, he read doubt in their faces and it hurt like a stab in the gut. He blinked telling himself that his feelings wasn't hurt, that it was okay, that he could deal with it, but then Rodney surprised him and said openly the words that he needed to hear.

"I trust you, Sheppard, I mean, we _all _trust you."

From the look on Rodney's face, he knew that the scientist meant it and so did Teyla and Ronon. He swallowed, feeling an uncomfortable lump form at the back of his throat not realising how much he needed that trust until now. He still remembered the time when he was turning into a bug and everyone, even his closest friends, had started to regard him with fear and distrust in their eyes. Losing that trust and seeing the fear in his friends' eyes whenever they looked at him, was a painful experience that left him feeling angry and frustrated. Ronon was the only one who wasn't afraid of him but the Satedan didn't trust his judgments – and with good cause too for John had felt his mind slipping away as the retrovirus took over. He experienced true isolation then and he understood how Ford felt after the young Lieutenant changed and became addicted to the Wraith enzyme. He didn't really want to experience the same thing now, and he realised that his team was taking a risk in having such faith in him. John told himself that he won't let them down.

-oOo-

As the rest of his team began discussing the reason why they had been attacked by the villagers, John looked around, wondering what they could do to get out of the prickle that they were in. So, they were surrounded and the natives wanted them here, which meant that the best course of action was to get out of Dodge City while they still could. Experience told him that if armed natives were willing to attack you to lead you to some place – that meant that the place was not going to be good for you. The question was: how were they going to get past the natives? As he mulled over this question, he suddenly felt a prickling sensation at the back of his neck, the hairs on his skin began to stand on their end and his blood began to burn painfully. He sensed danger approaching. In the distance, he heard the sounds of howling.

"Do you hear that?" he asked, reaching for his P-90 lying on the ground next to him. His side protested at the move, and he had to pause to grimace in pain, trying to catch his breath again.

Instantly the rest of his team stopped talking and became more alert. "Hear what?" Rodney asked, looking almost like a scared rabbit. Teyla cocked her head in concentration and then shook her head indicating a 'No'.

Ronon stood up, turned around and scanned the wooded forest nearby for hidden dangers. "I hear nothing," stated the Satedan grimly.

His team looked at him again and he could read in their faces concern for him. It was no contest; all knew that the Satedan's hearing was sharpest among them. Furtive glances went to his bandaged side and his pallor. He knew that they were wondering whether he was hallucinating, hearing stuff or going just plain crazy. Yet, the howling grew stronger and everything in his gut was telling him that danger was near – he knew they were in danger, it screamed at him with the burning sensation he felt in his blood.

"No, trust me, something … approaches," he stated firmly, forcing himself to get up. It was enough for them. Ronon nodded and went to help him to his feet, grapping his arm and offering support. There was a soft crackling sound and to his horror, he saw the Satedan grimacing in pain. When the Satedan removed his hands from him, the auras that John saw on the Satedan's fingers pulsed silver blue and gold. John was afraid that if his vision was working properly, they might indicate singed flesh.

"I'm all right, Sheppard, no permanent damage," the Satedan reassured him with a grim look of his face before stepping aside. "Which way?" Ronon asked.

John felt a warm glow form on his insides. Despite everything, his team still trusted him. That was all he needed. "There," he indicated, pointing towards the part of the forest under dark shadow with over grown trees and thick golden corpses.

Teyla helped Rodney to his feet.­ John noticed with a sense of pride that both Teyla and Ronon instinctively gave Rodney the safer position, placing the scientist in the middle of them. Checking his P-90, he stepped away from the team, the pain and weariness that he felt a moment ago drained away from him as adrenalin took over, lending him strength. ­The last morphine shot should hold for now, but John wasn't certain how long he could last before the pain became too much for him to handle again. _Please make it long enough for us to make it out of this alive_, he thought silently to himself.

"John, what is it?" Teyla's voice called out his name, wondering what he was doing.­

Something tingled at the back of his mind. "Spread out," he said evenly. "Don't stand too close to each other," he instructed.

His muscles felt rigid with tension as he stared ahead, seeing the duller yellow and green hues indicating plant life and trees of the alien forest. He concentrated harder. It took him a while but then he saw something dark - the colour of midnight black - approaching them further ahead. It was large and it seemed to howl like a thousand wolves or a ghostly killer storm of unceasing fury. His heart started to hammer loudly in his chest. What ever it was, he sensed that the thing was coming for them. It was the reason why the natives had led them there in the first place. _Sacrifice_. His mind seemed to scream out the word.

"Get back!" he suddenly shouted. "Get ready, guys…" he said, lifting his P-90 towards the thing that approached them, standing in frontline in hopes to protect his team.

Suddenly, Ronon was there moving in front of him, nudging him gently back to stand with Rodney and Teyla followed suit. Sheppard frowned.

"What do you think you're doing?"

"You're in no condition for a fight, Sheppard," the Satedan replied. But they had listened to his advice and spread out. It looked like his team was looking out for him as they positioned themselves around him.

The howling was getting worse and John was finding it increasingly difficult to focus. His blood seemed to burn more painfully. "You guys hear that?"

"Hear what?" Rodney asked again, shooting him a confused and anxious look. "It's only the wind blowing and rustling the trees and …"

Ronon however stopped the scientist with a dark glare. "If you say there's something out there, Sheppard, we believe you." The Satedan fixed him with a steady stare.

"Yes," Teyla agreed; her P-90 ready in her arms.

John nodded, suddenly realising that if he could choose anyone to be with him right now, he didn't have to look far, for these were the exact people whom he wanted with him. He trusted them with his life - just as he would willingly give him life up for them. They were his team and they were the best.

"Of course if you're wrong, Sheppard, and this just turned out to be some freak of nature caused by the wind or something, then we'll know you're nuts!" stated Rodney loudly, making John chuckle. He suddenly stopped himself when his side protested with a stab of pain.

The feelings of foreboding grew and steeling himself, he stared ahead. Through his world of shimmering colours, John saw the Darkness of ink-jet blackness approaching them, pushing through the trees and bushes. Inwardly he wondered whether their P-90 would have any effect on the entity that approached them now. By now even his team noticed that the disturbance caused on the foliage was the result of something more than just the wind.

"What is that?" Teyla asked uneasily.

"Why are the trees and bushes moving as if they're being pushed apart?" Rodney asked nervously, gripping his weapon tightly in his slightly shaking hands. "Crap, we're screwed aren't we?!"

John turned to look at the scientist, the howling was almost deafening now. "What do you see?!" he asked loudly.

Rodney looked at him surprised. "Why are you shouting?!" Then he shook his head and replied to John's question. "Nothing! Just trees and bushes being swept aside, but there's nothing there! Hang on! Wait a second!" He quickly placed his weapon at the bend of his arm and removed the life signs detector switching it on. "Whoa! You're right, Sheppard! The LSD is indicating something definitely there, something big, but wait, the readings are fluctuating, like it's only partially there, as if it's not fully in our dimension—"

John gritted his teeth, his heart pounding hard in his chest, adrenalin once more fuelling him with strength. "Worry about what it is later, Rodney! For now, aim at the source of disturbance and get ready to open fire at my command!"

Rodney gulped and nodded. Ronon and Teyla looked grim and were getting ready to do exactly as he said. Despite everything, John felt a sense of pride grow in him. His team were the best and hopefully, if they worked together, they would make it out of this alive.

"What do you see?" Rodney asked him, looking nervous.

"Darkness!" John replied and his mouth thinned into a grim line. It looked like their day just got worse.

-oOo-

TBC

Note: Thank you to those took the time to review the last chap.

Want more? Please review.


	8. Beware the darkness

Author's note: Many thanks for all your reviews! A number of you mentioned that the darkness was like the smoke creature from Lost. In my defence, it was pure coincidence as I've never really watched Lost - didn't even know that there was such a creature on Lost. Somehow I missed watching the first episode and after that, what bits and pieces I caught of it never really appealed so I never got into it. I was more thinking about that energy creature in the first season in Atlantis, although the one here isn't really the same type.

**Chap 8: Beware the darkness**

The rumble of trees being pushed aside and ground being trampled on continued. When the darkness approached within firing range, John ordered them to open fire. The rattle of P-90s filled the air, but as Sheppard feared, they didn't seem to have any effect on the ink-black smoke-like creature. It reminded John of the energy entity that they encountered in their first year in Atlantis. However, for that one, everyone could see it and it didn't howl as if there were a thousand wolves after him

With an eerie howl that was almost deafening to his ears, the Darkness rushed forward, a sinister ominous mass bowling through the clearing, aiming straight for John. All could see the long grass being trampled on, and Teyla and Ronon closed in ranks front on Sheppard, trying to prevent the invisible foe that they could not see from reaching him.

"No!" he cried out. "Get out of the way!"

_It's me that it wants!_ he thought to himself, suddenly realising that it was true. He had sensed it, felt it in the sudden burning of his blood. It had come for him. It had come to kill him. He was the sacrifice, that was why the natives had only used one of the alien projectile. For he had been the marker. But he had pulled out the device before it had completed its task.

Yet as the Darkness reached Teyla and Ronon, it seemed to reach out to them as if sensing them for the first time. To John's horror, he saw dark dusts similar to those that he had spotted earlier on Teyla and Ronon branch out from the Darkness, reaching out towards them like long wispy fingers. It looked like whatever that thing was - it was also the cause of their rashes. With sudden alarm, he anxiously wondered whether it was after them too. If that were the case, then it would mean that they were in danger as well.

In his gut, he suddenly knew that whatever the blackness was, Teyla and Ronon should stay well away from it. "_Teyla, Ronon! Don't let it touch you!_" he screamed out the command, running towards them hoping to push them out of the way. He had no idea what the Darkness would to do them, only that it was dangerous.

But his words of warning was of no avail, for Teyla and Ronon could not see it; all they felt was the wind blowing around them and the disturbance of grass at their feet. Only John could see it and he was too late as he saw threads of darkness reach out to wrap around his team mates. "NOOO!!" He screamed in a loud voice, hoping to distract the Darkness to himself. Somehow, to his amazement, his shout seemed to work, for the black cloud that covered both Teyla and Ronon in darkness suddenly tossed both warriors aside like rag dolls flung to the ground. He saw both of his friends hit the ground hard, with sickening loud thuds as they lay limp and still, making him truly fear for them.

"Oh God! Teyla! Ronon!" He heard Rodney gasp out in shock. "What just happened there?!" He looked at Sheppard with wide blue eyes, his gaze demanding answers.

John shook his head, he wasn't sure himself as his left hand gribbed his side hard, feeling the painful throb of his wound. When Rodney moved as if to go help his fallen team mates, the pilot reached out a shaky hand and held him back, "No! Stay back! Don't let it touch you!" Although, the Darkness didn't appear to be interested in the scientist, he wasn't about to take any chances. He wanted to go to Teyla and Ronon himself, but for now he had Rodney to worry about.

"Don't let _what _touch me?!" Rodney exclaimed nervously. "I can't _see _it to _avoid _it!"

"Then get behind me!" John ordered as he stared at the dark menacing cloud pulsating and growing before his eyes, not knowing what he could to do to stop it. A spark of moving light caught his gaze and his attention fell towards the tiny shimmers of silver-blue lights buzzing in the air close to his face. Acting on instinct, he focused his thoughts and called the lights towards him once more. Instantly, they reacted, reaching for his finger tips but the darkness rushed him, the howling almost deafening to his ears. "Run Rodney!" he cried out suddenly, shoving the scientist onwards behind him. By now tiny black dusts of storm clouds whirled around him, reaching out for him, chocking him, bringing fires of pain to his side and in his chest as he started to cough harshly.

"_Sheppard!_" he heard Rodney call his name. The concern in the scientist's voice was palpable even to him. Regardless of his command, there were sounds of approaching footsteps; Rodney was obviously heading back towards him as John dropped to his knees, coughing and coughing. His vision started to haze out and his blood burned with agony. He felt as if his lifeforce was being sucked from him. Tears of pain leaked down the corner of his eyes.

"_No! Get... back!_" he somehow managed to gasp out painfully to McKay. Rodney obviously could not see the danger that he was heading for. However, Rodney being Rodney ignored his warning all together. The scientist had learned all too well his lesson of not leaving your people behind and he wasn't about to leave Sheppard to his fate.

Squeezing his eyes shut, John knew that he had to act fast. Holding out his hand, he gathered more of the silver-blue sparks towards him and instinctively released some of it at the Darkness. The sparks seemed to sizzle the black smoke and within it John heard something that sounded like an enraged scream. With a whoosh, the black smoke retreated abruptly, moving closer back towards the woods again. John breathed out a sigh of relief, his head still spinning, his body still tingling and burning up with pain. Suddenly, he felt someone pulling at his shoulders. "Come on, Sheppard! Get your skinny ass up and help me here!"

He instantly recognised Rodney's voice. Damn it! He thought he had instructed the scientist to get away! It looked like the scientist could be as stubborn as a mule. "Thought I… asked you… to get back!" he hissed through gritted teeth.

"Yeah, right! Like I was gonna to let you face whatever it is alone!" Rodney retorted, his tugs becoming more insistent. "Now stop trying to be a hero and let me help you, dammit!" he heard Rodney utter angrily. "I don't know what's happening here, Sheppard, but whatever it is, we've got to get you out of here!" There was a sudden bright spark as Rodney's hands touched him again followed by a painful yowl of "Ow!"

Flapping his fingers wildly, Rodney looked at John with annoyance written brightly on his face. "Dammit! Sheppard! Will you quit giving me zaps! I'm trying to save your ass here!"

"N-not… doing it … on purpose, Rodney!" he apologised. Somehow the scientist managed to drag him to his feet. As he stood swaying alarmingly, John saw the fingers of darkness expand again, this time reaching out towards the still forms of Teyla and Ronon. To his horror, both of his unconscious team mates seemed to breathe in the black dust into their bodies, their chest expanding as they inhaled it in. Immediately their bodies began to jerk and spasm, but it only lasted for a few heart beats. In the next instance, their eyes snapped open and John knew that he and Rodney were in serious trouble when both Teyla and Ronon got up and turned to glare at him especially with hatred in their now jet-black eyes.

-oOo-

TBC


	9. Double trouble!

Author's note: Sorry for the late update, as I've been away and RL is extremely hectic at the moment so haven't had much time to do much writing. But thanks so much for the reviews! For those of you who mentioned Supernatural, when I wrote the last chapter, I was thinking that myself, but it wasn't intentional! ;D

**Chap 9: Double trouble!**

They came towards them slowly; their eyes (including the whites) as black as charcoal, the colour of their auras all wrong. Gone were the vibrant colours of many hues – their bodies now radiated a smoky greyish black, covering their entire forms almost like shadow people or zombies of the living dead. It reminded John of those freakin' Evil Dead horror movies that Ronon used to enjoy watching and laughing during Atlantis' Wednesday horror movie nights. John prayed that his friends were not actually dead, but only taken over and possessed by the Darkness that sought his life.

John leaned heavily on Rodney and forced the scientist to take several steps backwards. He knew that they were in a shit load of trouble. Ronon and Teyla could whip his and Rodney's butts at any time of the day especially in hand to hand combat. And it looked like they were intending to do so for in their zombie-like state, both warriors had left their weapons behind where they had dropped them. It was a small blessing for if Teyla and Ronon were attacking them with their weapons, he and Rodney might have been forced to shoot them, and personally he wasn't sure that he could bring himself to kill two friends, especially when he wasn't willing to give up on them. They were clearly not themselves for Ronon would have never abandoned his beloved Satedan blaster, leaving it unattended on the golden forest floor.

John stared at the P-90 that he gripped tightly in his hands, scowling deeply. No, Teyla and Ronon couldn't be blamed for their actions; he couldn't use the P-90 against them. He had once been taken over by an alien entity – he knew what it felt like to attack his own friends against his will; how it felt to walk on by while he left Ronon bleeding on the ground in Atlantis. Sure it was Weir who had shot the Satedan and it was John who had somehow managed to convince the alien entity Thalen to radio for help. But the fact remained that he had left Ronon (who had been seriously wounded by Weir's weapon fire) lying bleeding on the ground, while his body walked on to hunt down and kill an alien woman in Weir's body. That action had haunted him for a long time. It was fortunate that Carson had managed to save Ronon that day.

Now, they were faced with a possessed Ronon and Teyla and the question was what could he do about it? He knew that he couldn't use his weapon to kill them: these were Teyla and Ronon: his team mates, his friends and as Teyla had once stated: his family. No, killing them was not an option, not even if his life depended on it. But he still had Rodney to worry about, which meant that they were screwed if they didn't think of something damn fast. Soon Teyla and Ronon would be upon them and looking at them, John knew that they would have no qualms about killing him.

"Sheppard, what's wrong?"

Rodney had been too busy worrying about John, making sure that he was on his feet to notice the dead looks in his other team members' eyes. When he saw Teyla and Ronon approaching them, he cried out with relief, "Oh thank God you guys are okay! You got me worried there! I could really use some help with Sheppard here!"

John turned to give the scientist a sideways glare, taking another few steps backwards while pulling the scientist along with him none too gently. Adrenalin was pumping in his veins giving him some much needed strength. The wound at his side was also competing for his attention, pulsing like a mad demon. With a force of will he pushed the pain aside refusing to acknowledge it.

"They're not Teyla and Ronon anymore, Rodney! They're being controlled by… something else."

He saw Rodney staring at him then back at Teyla and Ronon, his face displaying a look of shocked horror. "_What?!_" The word was more high-pitched than usual. "Sheppard, are you sure about that?!"

John nodded and Rodney's eyes narrowed as he focused on their two team mates. "Teyla? Ronon?" he called out their names a little nervously. Realisation hit home when he saw their cold, emotionless, jet black eyes without any hints of whites in them.

"Oh dear God, you're right! It's like we're in Supernatural of something! Crap! We're soooo dead!"

John shook his head. "Hey, be more positive, buddy," he gritted through clenched teeth. "We need to find a way to stop them or at least slow them down!"

"Right, right!" Rodney stammered nervously as he fumbled with something in his hand. Sheppard was too busy paying attention to Teyla and Ronon to watch what Rodney was doing. Suddenly a shot rang out startling John, making him jump. Ronon jerked aside and a red stain appeared at the side of his upper arm. But the injury only stopped him for a second before he continued his slow advancing walk. John turned around, shocked to see Rodney holding a smoking 9mm in his hand. The scientist looked white and shaky.

"Rodney, what the hell do you think you're doing?!" he shouted at McKay. "That's Teyla and Ronon! You can't just … shoot them!" he gasped for breath. "We only want to stop them…, not kill them!"

Rodney was trembling in panic. "I… I _wasn't _trying to kill them! I was aiming for Ronon's leg, just to slow him down! If he can't reach us, he can't hurt us!"

"You call _that _aiming for his leg?!" John shook his head with disbelief and disgust. One day, he needed to give the scientist some serious targeting lessons. However, he suspected the reason for Rodney's bad aim was not so much because he couldn't aim straight, but because he was aiming at a team mate, a friend. Nevertheless, he realised that the scientist made a point. They couldn't kill them but they could certainly try to slow them down.

He turned back to face the Satedan. "Sorry Ronon," he said as he pulled out his 9mm and fired a shot at the Satedan's leg. He made sure that the shot wasn't a crippling one. Ronon dropped to one knee but then rose jerkily again his motions zombie-like. Teyla turned to look at her fallen companion without any emotion on her calm features but when she turned back to face John, her dark gaze dripped with venom. With a coarse yell, she suddenly flung herself towards John and Rodney screaming like a wild mountain cat. Teyla could certainly pack a punch, but John Sheppard already knew that - just like Teyla could kick his ass when it came to stick fighting.

Her first assault on John, he managed to avoid by twirling his body away just in time while she ran past him but it was murder to his side. However, in a blink of an eye, she whirled around, her feet kicking out like some karate expert, or in Teyla's case, fancy Athosian martial arts technique. Her boot struck John in the ribs hard and he heard something crack deep within him as pain exploded in his midriff. Crying out, he staggered backwards, falling to the ground. Teyla's eyes now glowed with unbridled malice as she moved in for the kill. Through his roaring ears, he heard Rodney yelling for her to stop. There was a pause in her attack and the sounds of a struggle. Looking up he was surprised to find the scientist practically jumping on Teyla's back, trying desperately to cease her attacks on him. If the situation wasn't so desperate, the sight might have been quite comical.

With her distracted, John managed to strike out with a kick of his own despite his own injuries. This time however his boot got lucky as it connected to an out-stretched limb and even from where he was he heard a crack. John winced inwardly, knowing that he had just broken her wrist but Teyla showed evidence of pain in her features but continue to struggle against Rodney on her back. Amazingly with an agile move, she swung him off despite a broken wrist and all. Rodney went flying backwards, only to be caught by Ronon, who grabbed him and tossed him aside like a rag doll. Rodney landed hard with an appalling thud that had John worrying that his team mate might have been hurt in the process.

However his concern for Rodney was suddenly diverted when a hard boot caught under his chin, dropping him like a rock and making him see stars. More kicks came his way which John tried to avoid by rolling away. However, he wasn't very successful as another kick caught in his kidneys. John cried out in pain and tried to struggle and fight back, but he was getting weaker and he knew that he couldn't last much longer. Through it all, he thought it bitter irony that he was going to meet his end by the hands of his friends; inwardly, he hoped that Teyla and Ronon wouldn't remember what they had done to him.

He saw no way out when a red blast suddenly enveloped first Teyla and then Ronon. Their eyes rolled over and the two warriors slumped unconscious on the ground. Lifting up his head, John saw Rodney holding up Ronon's Satedan blaster in his shaking hands, gasping, "Oh God! Oh God!" while still sitting on the ground.

"Is… it…" John stammered, panting heavily with each breath as hot stabs of pain jabbed into his chest.

"Yes, yes!" Rodney replied testily before John could complete his sentence, "It's set to stun! Geez! Do you think I'll shoot Ronon and Teyla without checking first?"

_Way to go, Rodney. I owe you one, buddy_. Then he frowned only now noticing something else. "Rodney… is your ankle broken?"

The scientist suddenly dropped Ronon's blaster and clutched his left foot that was bent in an unusual angle, nodding grimly.

_Great! _John thought wearily to himself as he rested his forehead back to the ground again, trying to will the various pulsing pain of his wounds to go away. He wanted to rest for a while, no, he corrected himself; he _needed _to rest for a while. But rest was not for the weary for a second later he heard Rodney make a small startled sound.

_What now?_ Lifting up his heavy head, John saw that both Teyla and Ronon (who were still lying with their backs on the ground) had opened their eyes – but those eyes were now staring sightlessly at the sky.

"I… I didn't kill them, did I?" Rodney asked worriedly.

John shook his head, "No Rodney, but … don't go near them."

"Hello?! Man with broken ankle, remember?"

John said nothing as he stared at his two possessed team mates, watching closely the aura of darkness around their prone bodies. Suddenly the sky became darker. He looked up, wondering what was happening.

"It's an eclipse! A freakin' eclipse of the sun!" Rodney stammered out looking at the sky in surprise.

John spared a glimpse at the face of the sun being quickly covered by a large moon. Celestial happenings were not his concern as his attention then turned back again worriedly towards Teyla and Ronon's prone forms. With some effort, he managed to get up on his knees, one hand resting on his thigh now, while the other clutched his wounded side. The burning sensation deep within him was increasing as the sky grew darker.

"Sheppard? You okay?" Rodney asked suddenly, looking at him with narrowed eyes when a moan of pain escaped him.

"I'm… not sure," he admitted, knowing that he couldn't lie to Rodney with a "I'm fine" when he truly wasn't. He felt afraid and he didn't know why.

The scientist tried to drag himself towards John but the pilot stopped him with a shake of his head.

"No!" he uttered tightly. "Rodney, stay away! I… I don't know what's happening, but I … don't think you shouldn't be near me now."

He could not tell the scientist what he felt in his heart. _The Darkness wants me_, _as long as you're not close, it'll hopefully not harm you!_ He could not allow Rodney to be hurt on his account.

Teyla and Ronon both suddenly started to scream wildly and their backs arched like a curved bow as they quivered with agony.

"Oh God!" Rodney said, wanting to help them out in some way.

"No!" John commanded. "Stay back!" It hurt to say those words but he knew that neither of them could help what was happening to Teyla and Ronon at the moment. It didn't take long before black smoke began pouring out from Teyla and Ronon's wide opened eyes, mouth and nostrils. Whatever it was that had possessed them, now appeared to be leaving their bodies in a hurry. John wondered whether it was the result of the Satedan blaster or the eclipse.

_Danger! Danger! Danger! _Danger screamed out at him like a blazing fire alarm; he knew that something else was about to happen, he just didn't know what. Then he saw it. It appeared above Teyla and Ronon's convulsing bodies - a menacing black cloud began to form in the air while more jet back smoke trails streamed out from the forest, like long fingers of death. The cloud grew in intensity almost as if it had some sort of relationship with the eclipse. John stared up at it, blue eyes wide, feeling trepidation and concern growing deep within him, feeling his blood suddenly burning as if he was being boiled alive.

"Sheppard?!" Rodney called out in concern. "You're glowing brighter now! And… and your eyes, is getting a brighter blue – almost sparkling! What's happening?!"

John shook his head and suddenly grabbed the sides of his head with both hands as a howling of a thousand wolves shrieked deafeningly from the black cloud. Before he could say a word to Rodney, he suddenly found himself engulfed by the black Darkness. His body was lifted off the ground and spun dizzily and painfully around and around until he lost all sense of equilibrium, not knowing which was up or down…

-oOo-

TBC


	10. Shooting stars

**Chapter 10: Shooting stars**

He was spinning around dizzily like a rotating top spun out of control. If he wasn't a pilot used to weightlessness and g-forces, he would have thrown up a long time ago. Suddenly he felt his body slamming viciously against the hard bark of a tree trunk. Pain exploded everywhere and he literally saw stars as his body fell limply to the ground. The black cloud now floated high above the sky, a Darkness amidst the darkened sky. Further away, he caught sight of Rodney clutching his broken ankle and looking at him with wide-eyed terror on his features.

As he lay gasping, trying to catch his breath, he thought he heard Rodney yell his name; the scientist was trying to drag himself towards him. "Hang on! Sheppard! I'm coming!"

_Damn it, Rodney! Stay away! _he wanted to cry out, but he was hurting too much to even say a word. He wondered how much more he could take of this. Long streams of black smoke once again reached out towards him, lifting his fallen body from the needle-golden pine forest floor high above the ground. He knew then that it was toying with him, punishing him for his earlier defiance before it moved in for the kill. At its touch, he felt his blood burning, boiling deep within himself. It felt as if he was being burned alive from inside out. From far below, he heard Rodney gasp, "_Sheppard! _What can I do?!"

_I don't know Rodney! I don't friggin' know!! _he wanted to yell back, but the Darkness was closing its hold around him, engulfing him, squeezing the life out of him, suffocating him. Then, pain as he had never experienced before struck him. His head swung back and he screamed, writhing in agony. Survival instinct took over and his hands reached out, grabbing, calling, _commanding _all the silver-blue sparks of lights which he knew was floating all around him (even though he couldn't see them in the Darkness) towards him.

At first, he felt them resisting him; it almost seemed as if the tiny dancing sparks, the ones that looked like lighted fireflies, had ceased to exist in the unnaturally darkened land caused by the eclipse. But he refused to give up, persevering, _calling _them towards him; he would not take _no _for an answer. It took a while but like a dam bursting its banks, all the small shimmers of light suddenly appeared out at his command, racing towards him, entering him, filling him with electrical current until he found himself glowing brightly a silver-bluish-golden aura. His eye sight heightened, he could see more auras all around him, every single sparkle of molecule – it almost felt as if he was now seeing a different world, another dimension, and he wondered about it. The tiny lights felt strange, alive, energised as they entered him. He didn't know what they did to him, all he knew was that they intermixed with whatever had been injected within him and that he would be able to use them to defeat the Darkness.

He called more towards him, and even more still for he somehow knew that what he had was not enough. Soon, he felt as if his entire body was electrically charged, burning bright, almost too bright. If he took anymore of the tiny blue flying lights he wondered whether he would be destroyed.

-oOo-

"Sheppard! What are you _doing_?!" Rodney shouted urgently as he stared at John, partially covering his eyes from the intense glare that the pilot was emanating. John Sheppard's floating form was now glowing as bright as a mini sun and it was almost impossible to look at him without hurting his eyes. Concern and worry vibrated in his voice, but Rodney no longer cared whether Sheppard heard it or not.

He knew that Sheppard was doing something dangerous, something that would likely place the colonel's life in danger. Knowing Sheppard as well as he did, the pilot always did, especially if he thought that his actions would save lives – and Rodney knew that John would try to protect them from the Darkness that Sheppard spoke of. Only the pilot seemed able to seem it, but Rodney no longer doubted that the threat was very real and that Sheppard now battled a battle that could cause his life. He saw Sheppard look his way, the tightness in the colonel's features betraying the pain that he was in; his unnatural blue eyes shinning ever so brightly now, almost _alien _in nature. He suddenly felt afraid for Sheppard.

-oOo-

John turned his gaze away from Rodney knowing that the scientist could not do anything to help him. This battle was his alone. His entire being was buzzing with energy as if on overdrive, yet, he instinctively knew that it wasn't enough to fight the Darkness. He had to risk more and refusing to think about the consequences of the damage he was doing to himself, he called still more of the lighted fireflies towards him. He could not stop what he had begun for he knew that to do so, he would be risking the Darkness going back into Teyla and Ronon. If he were not here, he suspected that the Darkness would have gone for them instead, taken all those who were marked with the rashes. He sensed that if the Darkness took Teyla and Ronon again, this time they would not survive. He knew that he had to destroy the Darkness once and for all while he was now enclosed by the Darkness itself. He could feel the Darkness slowly killing him; he could feel himself slowly dying as he called more of the dancing lights into him.

He was burning up and still he called more of the sparkled lights into him. _Not enough! Not enough! I need more! _He did not know how he knew that, he just did. It was getting more difficult to retain coherent thought now. If he did not release the lights soon, they would soon destroy him like an exploding star or a falling comet. But he knew that he had to risk it, he knew that he had to use all his resources; it was a fight to the death. The light within him was building up to a crescendo, to a point that was blinding. _Pain! Oh God, the pain! _He felt as if he was about to lose his mind. Nothing but pain and agony surrounded him. He was losing his tentative hold onto sanity, what he was meant to do, what he was fighting for; he was becoming lost in the world of a thousand silver-blue energised lights and to the Darkness that was draining the life out of him. The silver-blue lights sang at him, danced around him, inside him, outside him, all around him, lulling him to remain with them forever, to take more of them inside him. To burn as bright as a flaming comet: to sing their song of mystical wonders; to be one with them.

_No, I cannot! _he told them, shaking his head, knowing that where they wanted him to go, he could never return – for their world was not his world. These lights were like sentient beings, he could not understand them until now, and they were there to help him fight the Darkness for there was something within him that was different – there was something within him that made him the Chosen One.

_Why? Why? Why? Why? _They asked in disappointment; a sing-song chorus of voices calling out in unison; they wanted him to stay, they wanted him to be one with them, they wanted him never to leave them. They did not understand that if he stayed, it would mean that he would not be able to return to home, back to his friends, to Atlantis, to where he belonged. He knew that if he stayed, he would not be the same again.

For a moment, he wondered whether they were truly speaking to him or whether they were the by-products of a fevered mind. Doubts began to form. He did not know anymore. With his last grip of sanity, he knew that he had to release the lights now before they burned him up to the point of no return, before they changed him forever. With a yell, he suddenly struck out at the Darkness, shooting all the silver-blue lights he had collected deep within him out into the heart of the Darkness – an explosion in the darkened sky; aiming them like silver-blue and now gold arrowheads into the Darkness. Eagerly, the lights did his bidding; they went towards where he directed them; stronger than ever after his merge with them.

The black entity of Darkness raged out as it saw what he had done. Yet more lights shot out from him like shooting stars or thunderous lightning, causing potted holes of light beams to slash into a jet black cloud, wounding it. Then the Darkness began shriek in pain; braying like a thousand wolves shot by arrow shafts and he felt the black cloud tremble all around him. For a few heart beats, he hung in the air. Then with a shriek of pain and howling terror, the Darkness shattered, exploding into a shimmer of stars and he felt himself dropping, falling – slamming into the ground hard this time; knocking the wind and the breath out of him; cracking things that were not meant to be cracked.

Pain exploded inside and outside him. Darkness swamp before his eyes but a different kind of darkness now, a familiar kind of darkness, one that he had experienced before, not the type of darkness from the malevolent being that was trying to kill him. There was nothing for him to hold on to now. He stared at the sky, seeing it getting brighter as the sun revealed its face again, bringing light back to the world of darkness; the eclipse was over. However, soon, even the sight of the sky above faded and he felt himself slipping, fading away into nothingness.

He had emptied himself out of the dancing silver-blue lights, shooting them into the Darkness and it seemed when he had released them, they had taken a part of him with them.

As if from far, far away, he heard familiar, anxious, caring voices calling his name with the sound of panic especially in one of them. _Rodney? _He recognised the scientist's tone by the various threats that the other was raining down on him at the moment. Something about being a damn fool for risking his life again; that he had better be all right or he would have to suffer through cold showers for a month. He wanted to smile, to reassure his friend, but he had no strength left in him. He felt someone lifting his head, pillowing it against something soft; he felt a gentle hand on him; smaller, familiar, caressing his hair away from his sightless eyes. _Teyla? _he wanted to ask, to call out and speak her name, feeling glad and relieved to know that she was back to herself once again and conscious. His eyes were open, but he could not see anything anymore. All was dark shapes and darkness now. Death called to him. A rough, low voice spoke; he recognised the sound of Ronon's voice, even if the words were no longer recognisable. They were with him; his team was with him again. He had done his part; they were alive; the Darkness was gone. He could rest now. He closed his eyes and allowed himself to slip away…

TBC

Still like?


	11. Planes of existence

Author's note: Hope all of you enjoy this chapter. Winterelf, you get your wish.

-oOo-

**Chapter 11: Planes of existence**

Rodney stared at John's motionless form in shocked horror, stunned silence and growing panic. That was it! Nobody was going to stop him from making his way to Sheppard now! Crawling on all fours, gasping, grimacing and wincing in pain, he hurriedly made his way to John's side.

_Nononononono! Please, don't be dead! Please, don't be dead! _His mind cried out over and over again. As he approached closer to the limp form, he noticed the staring and unfocused eyes which worried the heck out of him. Sheppard couldn't be dead! Sheppard always made it out of dangerous situations alive, he was going to be alright, he was going to be fine, Rodney tried to convince himself.

At that last battle, just as Sheppard screamed out his shout of defiance; Rodney had seen beams of silver-blue and golden rays of light shoot out from the Colonel's body. At the same time, the Darkness that Sheppard had spoken about manifested itself for the first time for all to see. Rodney had witnessed in horror and stunned disbelief as he watched Sheppard being held tightly in the grip of the dark pulsating cloud. Even from where he was, he could sense the malice and wanton destruction radiating out from the dark imposing cloud above him. He sensed that it was killing Sheppard somehow. Yet, to his amazement, he watched in wonder as he saw the beams of light shoot out from Sheppard's body to slice into the black cloud, ultimately destroying it in an impressive yet blinding wave of explosion that literally lit up the sky just as the eclipse ended. He could not for the life of him fathom how Sheppard did what he just did, but he had been impressed by it nonetheless.

Now, as he reached the colonel's bruised and injured form, his fear and anxiety heightened to new heights. For an instance, he thought that he had arrived too late until he saw the slow rise and fall of Sheppard's chest indicating that the colonel still lived. There was a thin trail of blood leaking from the side of Sheppard's mouth, indicating that Sheppard had either bitten something inside his mouth or something had punctured his lung. Looking into the colonel's eyes, he was startled to see them flickering eerily between blue and gold. The alternating colours freaked Rodney out. He knew that it was scientifically impossible, and yet, here he was, witnessing the colour of John's eyes change even as he watched.

"Sheppard, don't you dare friggin' die here! Do you hear me, Sheppard?! You destroyed the Darkness, kicked its bad-ass butt, saved all of us, so don't be a damn _idiot _and kick the bucket now! Cos…, cos... Damn it!" he yelled at the top of his lungs, terrified, panicking and not knowing what to do. "Damn you, Sheppard!" he yelled, wanting to shake the man, but too afraid to do so for fear of bringing further harm to the colonel. "If you're _not_ all right, if you _don't _come out of this _alive_, I… I'll make sure you'll have _cold _showers for a …" he tried to think of some substantial amount, "for a _month_!!!" He did not even realise how ridiculous that sounded for if John died, he wouldn't need any showers at all, period.

"Rodney…" he felt a supportive hand on his shoulder. Looking up, he saw Teyla kneeling beside him. Somehow the Athosian must have regained consciousness sometime during the battle, but he had been too focused on Sheppard to notice it.

"Oh… _John_…" Teyla's voice radiated the shock and horror she felt when she saw Sheppard's condition. Tears glittered at the corner of her eyes as she gently pillowed his head and placed it on her lap while brushing away some unruly strands of wet dark hair from his forehead. "I am so _sorry_, John," she whispered softly, so soft that Rodney barely heard her words. There were tears of shame in her eyes and Rodney suspected that she recalled her frenzied battle with Sheppard when she and Ronon were under the influence of the Darkness. Rodney also realised that she was cradling her other hand close to her chest. From the misshapen way it looked, McKay suspected that it was broken. She was also trembling slightly and Rodney wondered whether she was suffering from shock.

Sheppard's eyes remained opened but Rodney knew that he saw none of them. He wondered whether the pilot knew that they were there. He lifted his hand and gripped Sheppard's forearm, trying to offer support. _Don't die, Sheppard_, he pleaded softly in his mind, not at all sure what to do, how to begin to help Sheppard, how to ensure that Sheppard lived. The pilot's breath was becoming more erratic now, heightening his anxiety for him. Yet, Rodney feared that there was something else wrong with the colonel, something that none of them knew how to fix. It was as if part of Sheppard wasn't there anymore; as if even as they watched, part of Sheppard was leaving them behind. He knew that it was a crazy irrational thought, but still the feeling frightened him, and from what he had seen today, he felt fearful for Sheppard.

Ronon stumbled towards them grunting slightly in pain as he bent his wounded and bleeding leg and collapsed to the ground. Rodney remembered Sheppard shooting Ronon's leg and his own poorly aimed shot, hitting the big guy in the arm. Only now did he realise how easily that he could have accidentally killed Ronon. No wonder Sheppard had been angry with him. Looking at the Satedan's forearm, he saw that it was still bleeding too. In fact, the Satedan looked paler than normal, there was perspiration glistering on his forehead. Guilt racked him: it was his idea to shoot Ronon. He wondered whether the big guy remembered it.

Ronon however did not look at him, but instead the Satedan's gaze was solely on Sheppard. The big guy studied Sheppard's still form worriedly. "How is he?" Ronon asked.

Teyla shook her head, one hand now going over Sheppard's form, woodenly examining him for injuries. "I think a few of his ribs are broken," she stated, she closed her eyes at this, as if recalling being the cause of some of those broken ribs. But then taking a large swallow, she opened her eyes and continued, "and he's side wound is bleeding badly again. His arm also appears to be broken… he's burning up; I fear that he has a dangerous fever… Someone please pass me the field medical kit, we've got to re-bandage the wound at his side."

While Rodney scrabbled to remove his bag-pack, reaching for the emergency medical kit kept inside there, Teyla leaned forward towards Sheppard and called his name. "John? Can you hear me?"

Sheppard did not respond; his starring unfocused, alternating-colour eyes did not even blink. All of them were disturbed by this. This was not good at all.

"What's wrong with his eyes?" Ronon asked.

Rodney shook his head. "I don't know, but I don't like it."

The Satedan visage went grim, as he placed a firm grip on Sheppard's shoulder, and said fiercely, "You'll be okay, Sheppard, just hold on."

Rodney didn't know whether Sheppard heard the Satedan's words, but his heart thudded in panic when he saw Sheppard close his eyes and seemed to breathe his last.

"Oh God!... Is he…?"

Teyla urgently bent down, checking for a pulse. Her focus was more alert now even though her eyes still glistered with slow flowing trail of tears. "No, Rodney. He still breathes, but barely. I fear that he has internal injuries but this goes beyond what Dr Beckett taught me."

Rodney hated this, he knew that there was a strong possibility that Sheppard could die anytime soon.

Dark, stormy Satedan eyes turned towards them. "Then we must get him back to Atlantis, Dr Beckett will fix him up," added Ronon fiercely.

"Yes, but what about the natives?" asked Rodney. "They're still blocking our way to the Stargate!"

"Rodney, Ronon…" he felt Teyla's hand on his upper arm, however, he was too focused glaring at Ronon, demanding a solution out from the Satedan, to pay any attention to her.

"_Rodney, Ronon!_" Teyla called louder, more insistent this time. There was something in her voice that demanded their attention now.

"_What?!_" he finally turned back to her in annoyance. Couldn't she see that they needed to find a solution to get Sheppard back to Atlantis?!

"Something's happening to Sheppard!" she cried.

Both men turned to see Sheppard's body flicker and fade out – almost as if he was fazing out like some weird holographic image.

"What in the freakin' world is happening here?!" Rodney gasped in shock. Something else was happening to Sheppard, and he didn't like it one damn bit!

"You're the scientist, you tell us!" Ronon growled, sounding angry and frustrated.

Rodney stared at Ronon for a second then quickly whipped out the Ancient life signs detector, while making adjustments to it. "Shit!" he uttered the words as he read what he saw there.

"What is it, Rodney?" asked Teyla worriedly.

"I… um, it looks like Sheppard's fazing out or something, his readings is quite similar to that dark entity that he was fighting with which we couldn't see."

"So, how do we stop it?" Ronon's scowl grew.

"I… I don't know! But I think Sheppard's molecule structure might be changing to something else. Hang on…" He dived back into his back-pack again, and pulled out his trusty tablet PC, which he attached to the life signs detector. He looked at the readings of the life signs detector, then back at his tablet. "Oh crap!"

"What?" Ronon asked darkly, clearly not liking what he was hearing.

Rodney looked up and spoke rapidly, blue eyes wide, feeling close to panic. "I think that the Darkness and the Lights are from another plane of existence so to speak– perhaps a parallel dimension or sorts – that's why none of us could see them, except for Sheppard, due to whatever changes that was happening to him… but worse yet, I think that the changes that's happening to Sheppard are still happening. I… I think that it's changing him to their plane of existence and if that happens, we wouldn't be able to see him or help him!"

"So how to we stop it?" demanded the Satedan.

Rodney shook his head. "I don't know, I don't know if we _can _stop it! But we need to get Sheppard back to Atlantis stat!" Rodney locked into the Satedan's dark gaze. Dex he saw understood the urgency of the matter.

"Er guys…" said Teyla suddenly.

"What now?" Rodney asked, looking down at her again.

"We have visitors… The natives… they're here," Teyla said, as she released her hand and pointed ahead.

Turning around, he saw that they were surrounded by the natives who had attacked them earlier.

"Crap! We're so screwed!"

-oOo-

TBC

Want more? Please review.


	12. Chosen One

Author's note: Thanks for the reviews guys. I truly appreciate them.

**Chapter 12: Chosen One**

Ronon whipped out his broadsword and looked like he was about to go charging at the armed natives in a mad rampaging storm.

"Ronon, _wait!_" Rodney cried out as he saw that the natives were not attacking, but standing still as if waiting for something. After a minute or two, they moved apart, opening a path for the crazy old woman wearing the ridiculous looking deer antlers to walk through.

She approached Rodney, Teyla and Ronon carrying a long staff and an old woven bag in her hands. Ronon, who was standing in front of them with his broadsword still drawn, immediately closed in ranks protectively in front of Sheppard's prone body.

The old woman ignored the Satedan and her dark gaze went to John's motionless form, noticing his flickering state with his head pillowed on Teyla's lap.

"Where is the Soul Stealer?" she demanded, looking up at Rodney and capturing his gaze. Her wild eyes had not changed the scientist's feeling that they seemed to know more than she let on.

"What?" Rodney asked, not really sure what to make of this.

"I believe that she's referring to the Darkness that John spoke about, Rodney," Teyla informed him.

"Oh, well, um, Sheppard destroy it," he stated. "No thanks to you or your friends over there!"

Immediately there were murmurs of surprise among the armed natives. An unreadable look crossed the old woman's aged features as her dark gaze shot towards John again before directing her stare at Teyla and then Ronon. For the first time since their encounter with her, her gaze wasn't filled with contempt when she spoke to the Athosian and Satedan.

"It this true?" she asked them, clearly wanting confirmation, doubting Rodney's word. "Did you witness this event yourselves? Did the Soul Stealer not come after the both of you, taking over your bodies?"

Rodney saw Teyla flinch slightly at that last question and he fumed, annoyed that his word would be questioned while he applied firm pressure to the bandage that he held tightly onto Sheppard's bleeding side. Just before the old woman appeared, Teyla had set Rodney's hand over the wound, asking him to press down hard, as she couldn't really do it herself with her broken wrist. For the moment, Rodney found that the more urgent situation of saving Sheppard's life allowed him to ignore the throbbing pains of his own injured ankle. He could feel the heat radiating out of Sheppard's wounded body. Dear God, they really needed to get Sheppard back to Atlantis asap; they couldn't afford to waste time trying to convince these bloody natives to let them go. "Of course it's _true_… what do—"

However, Teyla cut him off before he could complete his tirade. "Dr McKay speaks the truth. Both of us witnessed the event ourselves."

Ronon gave a curt nod at Teyla's words. "Ask your people to move out of the way if you don't want another fight in your hands."

Rodney might have cheered the Satedan on if he wasn't so worried about losing Sheppard in the next few minutes or so, not counting the fact that the big guy's blunt threat might have an adverse effect on the blood-thirsty natives, making them turn on them instead. He honestly doubted that the Satedan, who was also injured himself, could take on all the armed natives. Surprisingly, he discovered that the old woman paid no heed to the Satedan's words, which made up his mind that the one wearing the deer-antlers on her head was a raving lunatic.

"By all the Sunsolar's stars, he's the _Chosen One_ indeed," he heard the old woman gasp out softly in surprise. Her ancient features took on a look of awe and wonderment as she turned her attention back towards John Sheppard. She studied him for a moment before turning around and shouting to her people. "_He is the Chosen One!_"

To the surprise of everyone, she suddenly dropped to her knees and bowed respectfully at them, or more accurately towards Sheppard's prone form, until the tip of her forehead touched the ground. The rest of the natives laid their weapons on the ground and followed suit.

"McKay, what's going on here?" Ronon hissed uncomfortably. Fighting armed natives the Satedan understood. This was way out of his league and he didn't like it one damn bit.

"What?" Rodney snapped, a little wide eyed himself. "You're asking me? I'm an astrophysicist not an anthropologist! But at a guess, I'll say that Sheppard is currently being worshipped."

At Rodney's voice, the old woman lifted her head and stood up, offering an explanation. "For over a thousand years, the Soul Stealer has always come to take our people when they are marked with rashes. We know that the time is near when the rashes appear both in our people and in strangers when we throw the Powder on them. We learned over time that unless we give it a Sacrifice whose form has been transformed, made easier to enter the realm of the Soul Stealer, it would kill all those marked with the rashes." She paused now, as if thinking of those dark times experienced by her people.

"It comes every fifth cycle and claims the Sacrifice at the time when the day turns to night during the solar eclipse of the sun," she continued smoothly, just when Rodney thought she had fallen asleep on her feet. "It is written in our ancient scrolls that a stranger, untouched by the mark of the Soul Stealer, would come to our village one day and save our people from this wretched curse. Known in the scrolls as the Chosen One, he would accept the role of the Sacrifice and take a wound meant for another. Then he would battle the Soul Stealer and win freedom for our people." She turned her dark eyes towards Rodney now. "My hunters tell me that they had targeted you for the Sacrifice, but that your leader had placed himself in the path of the Spear of Sacrifice instead. He gave up his life for you…"

Rodney felt guilty enough as it is, he damn well knew that Sheppard had received his injury while saving him; he really didn't need to be reminded of it from a crazy old coot. "Yes, yes, this is all very interesting," he stated impatiently, "But right now, Sheppard needs help. Can we stop yapping and start saving his life?"

Instantly the old woman's eyes widened before becoming more alert. "He still lives?!" she asked, looking shocked.

"Geez, you're slow. Yes, of course he's still alive," Rodney announced in annoyed anxiety. Sometimes primitive natives can be so dim. "And we intend to see that he continues to do so."

"You got a problem with that?" the Satedan added; his visage dark and threatening. All there instinctively knew that the tall warrior would not allow anyone or anything to harm Sheppard: that he would guard the fallen man with his life. His own injuries meant nothing to him as the large man ignored them without a glance towards his wounded arm and leg.

The old woman took in the tall warrior's countenance before shaking her head slowly. "No," she replied, her tone of voice changing to grudging respect. "But the Chosen One was shot by the Spear of Sacrifice. He…" she paused hesitantly, knowing that her words would sound harsh to those hearing it, "he should be dead by now..."

"What? Because he was shot with this?" Rodney whipped out the alien device with half of the blue liquid still in it. "Well, Sheppard pulled it out before it could complete its deadly task!" From what he heard so far, he was really beginning to dislike these people. To know that they had shot Sheppard with something that was meant kill as a form of sacrifice seriously pissed him off.

"By all the Ancestors' stars," the old woman gasped in shock. "He pulled it while it was halfway injecting the Change into him?"

"Yes," Teyla replied, "he was in much pain."

"Pain?" the old woman frowned again as puzzlement formed on her ancient features. "But it's not meant to react to the body that way. At first contact, it puts the Sacrifice to sleep almost immediately so that he feels no pain when the Change occurs. It is more humane that way."

"Sleep? Well I can assure you that Sheppard wasn't the least bit sleepy…" Rodney stated, remembering the colonel's screams of agony. God, he never wanted to hear them again, but even they were better than seeing Sheppard's too still and silent condition as he was now. John's body suddenly flickered again. "Crap! Look, if what you say is true, Sheppard helped you and your people out, he got rid of this Soul Stealer for you. So, I'll say you owe him one… _big time_."

However, the old woman was not over the fact that Sheppard had remained conscious and had suffered for it. "But this is impossible. The Sacrifice is not meant to suffer, but to fall into an un-waking sleep while his body changes…"

"Yeah, well, Sheppard likes to do the impossible. And right now, we could really use some help. We really need to get him back to the Stargate immediately!"

At Rodney's words, the old woman's eyes narrowed as she craned her neck to study John's prone form more closely. Her stance changed from surprise to urgent concern. It was like watching at some freakin' Chameleon. "If the Spear of Sacrifice did not manage to complete its task, then there might be time enough to save him! I see that he is in the last stages of making his journey into the Soul Stealer's world. I have something that can stop the Change before it's too late."

She took a step closer towards John as she pulled out what appeared to be another spear-like alien device from her woven bag. "This one is different," the old woman assured them. "This one offers a counter-reaction to the Changes that he's going through."

But despite her words of reassurance, Ronon was instantly upon her like an avenging angel, blocking her path to Sheppard as he glared down at her threateningly. At his reaction, the armed natives surrounding them stirred, some grabbing their weapons back in their hands.

-oOo-

"Ronon! Let her through!" Teyla called out to the Satedan in a commanding tone.

"What?!" Rodney gasped out in shock, turning to look at the Athosian. "Are you serious? Do you really want to allow that crazy old coot to stab that thing into Sheppard again?! I mean, can we trust her? After what they did to the Colonel the first time?! For all we know, it might kill him! We need to get him back to Carson! He'll fix Sheppard up! We don't know what that old wacko's mumbo-jumbo treatment would do to him!"

"I agree," Ronon stated.

However, Teyla refused to back down. She clearly recalled her punches and kicks aimed at John, cracking his ribs, _hurting _him while she under the influence of the Darkness. She hated every moment of it; every punch, every kick, it was as if she could feel the terrible pain herself that she was inflicting upon John's body. The _thing_ within her had gloated with pleasure, while the 'Teyla' within her had screamed and shouted out in horror and despair at what she was doing to her team leader and friend. She had thought the nightmare would never end and had cried out in joy when she felt the stun blast finally hit her body, forcing her to stop hurting John, releasing the hold of the Darkness upon her, despite the physical pain that the Darkness caused her as it slowly left her body. Even in pain, she never felt so glad, so _thankful _as she did then; she would rather experience physical pain like that a thousand times over than to be forced against her will to hurt John again.

Now as she stared at Rodney's fearful and anxious eyes, she knew that she had to do what she felt was right for John. Rodney was frightened, so was Ronon, although he didn't show it as much as the scientist. She clearly knew how her two team mates felt, for she felt her own fear for John clutch painfully in the pit of her stomach. Teyla knew that she normally didn't display such open desperation on her usually calm features, but this time she let her desperation shine through. She had to make Rodney and Ronon understand.

Despite his stoic appearance, she _knew _that Ronon also felt guilty over what they had done to John, the hurt that he had caused him while under the influence of the Darkness.

"I don't think John is going to make it in time for us to get him back to Atlantis!" she finally stated anxiously, imploringly. She would even beg if she had to. "Look at him! He's 'fazing out' as Rodney puts it, more and more now! Rodney, you yourself said that you didn't know how to help the Colonel in this. This is something that we have never encountered before. Dr Beckett will know how to deal with John's physical injuries, but can you honestly say that he'll know how to stop the changes of the Colonel's body from going into another plane of existence?"

-oOo-

Rodney stared at Teyla wide eyed and speechless before forcing himself to answer her. "No, at least not in time." What she said made sense. Even if they did manage to get Sheppard back to Atlantis, they'll still needed time to analyse the alien-liquid that was changing before they could work out an antidote. But by the time they managed to figure that out, Sheppard would be long gone, disappearing into god knows where. Sheppard's best chance was to risk the crazy old woman's treatment and hope for the best.

"Let the old woman through, Ronon."

Ronon glared at the old woman for another tensed second or two. However, before he stepped aside, allowing her access to Sheppard, he whispered softly to her ear. "If he dies, you die."

The old woman stared at the Satedan unfazed by his threat. To Ronon's surprise, she suddenly blinked and nodded. "A fair enough trade, Ronon Dex," she replied, "If I cannot save the Chosen One after what he has done for us, I certainly deserve death by your hands."

-oOo-

TBC

What can I say, I'm a sucker for prophecy and 'chosen one' tales. ;D The result of too many fantasy stories when I was younger… lol.


	13. Da lights! Da lights!

Author's note: This chapter has a spoiler to the episode Tao of Rodney. Sorry, I tried not to add it in, but it made more sense having it here. Hope you guys don't mind and apologies again.

**Chapter 13: Da lights! Da lights!**

John floated in the world of darkness; it felt nice in here, wherever _here_ was. Occasionally, he would see flashes of light or more accurately _lights_, and find himself looking into a realm so different from his own, so alien, unlike anything he had ever experience before - filled with moving lights and shadows, floating constantly, morphing into strange looking objects and transparent-like bubbles with strange, alien colours that he had never in his life seen before. His body didn't feel like his body anymore and the pain now seemed very far away. He felt himself drifting (perhaps it was his spirit or his soul, he wasn't certain anymore) almost like a feather or being weightless in space. More and more as the flickers occurred, more and more he drifted closer to this strange new world; a world where the lights twirled and danced and called his name with such playful delight.

He smiled, wanting to lift up his hands to touch them, only to find that his entire body was a source of light itself – golden hues that shimmered like the sun. Other lights now approached him, twirling and dancing around him. "_Chosen One! Chosen One!_" the lights sang out in happy excitement, greeting him with openness and warm delight.

"_Chosen One? Why do you keep calling me that?" _he asked curiously, suddenly realising that the thoughts in his mind were being projected and understood in this realm of strangeness. "_I am not the Chosen One"_

There was laughter and giggling sounds coming from the lights now. Smoke, wind, dust and multi-coloured shadows moved in to listen in on their conversation. "_Oh but you are! You are the Chosen One!" _the lights sang out the words. "_You allowed us to defeat the Darkness! Without you, we would have never been strong enough. Soon you will be one of us! Come! Come! You are welcome here! Stay! Stay!_"

It seemed that once before he had such an invitation and that he had turned it down. Now however he wasn't so sure. His mind felt confused, he could no longer remember his own name. He felt lost. _So, is this what Death is like?_ his rational mind wondered.

There was a sudden pain at his side, as if something had jabbed into his body and he felt something cool surge through him. His body? he wondered._ Do I have a body? Do I have a life somewhere else?_

"_Yes, you do Chosen One, as you still do now_," a stranger's voice spoke to him now, not the voice of the lights that danced around him but the voice of someone else. It was a voice of a stranger. It was an aged voice, an old woman's voice. She seemed to reach out to him from the realm of some other place, a familiar place.

"_Who are you?_" he finally asked. He did not know this one. He did not recognise the voice.

The voice smiled, it was strange for he could not 'see' the voice as a _smile_ but he sensed it nevertheless. _"I am called Gwenderlo, I never formally introduced myself to you, Chosen One, but you are called Sheppard…, Colonel John Sheppard, so you had told me once."_

_Sheppard? _The name seemed to have a familiar ring to it. _John Sheppard?_ He tested out the name in his mind. Hmm, it seemed _right _somehow, like wearing an old pair of shoes, except that he didn't need shoes here. The name was familiar but who the man was, was slowly slipping away from him. The lights confused him, despite the name claiming him for its own. The lights as if sensing his confusion, called him again.

"_Chosen One! Chosen One! Come be one with us!"_ He found that he wanted to obey them.

"_No!_" the ancient voice commanded him sternly.

"_No?_" he asked, pausing, surprised.

"_You cannot go, Chosen One, your friends do not want you to go." _

"_Friends?"_ he asked. Did he have friends? He no longer remembered. Being more and more of this world now was taking away his memories; the lights had taken a part of him away with them… Yet, something, a part of him, some deep subconscious part of him held back, tried to fight back. But his resistance was weakening as if somewhere, far away, the life that he knew was failing him.

"_Chosen One! Come! Come!_" the lights called him again, dancing and swirling around him playfully. He took a step forward; the name John Sheppard was but a name now, a faint memory of someone who was no longer part of him. The lights called him, he was part of the lights, and the lights were part of him.

"_Do NOT go!" _the old woman's voice commanded. She sounded fearful, he did not know why but this conversation was beginning to tire him.

"Go away." He waved her away; he wanted to be left alone with the lights. This Gwenderlo, this old woman meant nothing to him; he did not know her. She was only a voice in his mind, a stranger's voice at that. It was not a voice of anyone whom he knew, anyone who could hold him there or make him want to turn back.

"_No wait! Please listen!_" she begged him. He ignored her and continued to look at the lights. He knew that soon he would be forever with the lights.

-oOo-

The old woman wearing the antlers headpiece sighed and opened her eyes, releasing the palm of her hand from Sheppard's heated brow as she came out from her trance-like state and looked at her three anxious onlookers while shaking her head despondently. All the members of John's team did not like the way she looked.

"_Well? _How did it go? Did you manage to save Sheppard?" Rodney asked anxiously. "Why is his body still flickering then? In fact, I think it's flickering even more now! What did you do?"

Tired dark green eyes locked onto Rodney's, then at Teyla and finally at Ronon. "The Chosen One does not trust me. He does not listen to me. He wants to stay where he is."

"What?!" Rodney frowned, not understanding. "But you said that once you injected him with … whatever that crap you injected him with, he'll be okay, that his body wouldn't be disappearing to that other plane!" He knew that his voice sounded accusatory, but he didn't care. After all, this was Sheppard's life that they were talking about.

Ronon took a step forward, his sword hand gripping the handle of the broadsword tightly, threateningly, as he scowled darkly at the old woman.

Gwenderlo looked at them and shook her head sadly. "The deTransferon drug will help the victim to adjust back to this world, but only if the victim is willing to return to the realm of his existence on his own accord. The Chosen One, your John Sheppard, does not wish to return. He… does not… trust me."

"What?! Well, can you blame him?! Of course he _doesn't_ trust you! To put it frankly, _I_ don't trust you!" Rodney ranted.

"Rod-ney…" Teyla placed a warning hand over his forearm, trying to forestall him before he said something that made things worse.

"_What? _It's true isn't it?" Rodney stared back at the Athosian wide eyed. "After all, this old woman—"

"My name is _Gwenderlo,_" the old woman stated a little huffily.

Rodney pointedly ignored her, "—is a _stranger_ to Sheppard. Actually, not only a stranger but someone who practically tried to _kill_ him! Of course he's not going to listen to her! Here now…" he turned back to speak to the old woman, blue eyes burning brightly with determination. "Can _I_ speak to him?!"

Gwenderlo stared at him for a moment before nodding slightly as she mused softly to herself. "Yes, it _may _work, especially if he hears the voice of a _friend_…. If the friendship that you have with him is strong enough…. If you know the art of meditation, it's possible that I could get you to converse with him through the Seeing Stone, which links you and me to the Chosen One."

"Meditation?" Rodney said a little hesitantly. "You mean like clear blue skies…, that sort of thing? Sheppard taught me how to meditate when I was trying to ascend a few weeks ago, of course, I never figured that I'll need to use it to save his life… Hmmph, talk about karma, huh?" Seeing the confused look on Gwenderlo's face, he hurriedly stated, "Nevermind, forget what I've just said…, so how shall we do this?"

He took a deep breath, trying to prepare himself, recalling what Sheppard had taught him. Then he closed his eyes but before the old woman could say anything else, he suddenly opened them again and snapped his fingers. "_Wait!_"

Everyone looked at him questioningly. "Beckett!" he said, looking at Teyla and Ronon urgently.

"Dr Beckett isn't here, Rodney…" Teyla said patiently as if speaking to a child.

"Yes, yes! I _know _that!" replied Rodney feeling annoyed. What? Did Teyla think he _was _a child?! "And that's the problem. If we're successful in this, or even worse, if we aren't, somebody should get back to the Stargate and get Carson Beckett here!"

Both Teyla and Ronon looked at each other, understanding immediately.

"I shall go then," said Teyla, knowing that she was the most logical choice due to Ronon's and Rodney's leg injuries. Yet, even as she spoke the words, she was not happy about it. She wanted to be near John, she wanted to offer him what comfort and support that she could. She wanted to be there, should he die; to say the required prayers to the spirits of the Ancestors; to guide his soul to the source of Light if it ever came to that. Even if John himself didn't believe in them, it made Teyla feel better to know that at least she did what she could for him. But the situation called for Dr Beckett's presence, and she knew that what she did was going to hopefully help John survive. So despite wanting to stay at John's side, she knew that it was more important if she went and got them help.

Rodney in the meantime urgently turned towards Gwenderlo and the natives, snapping his fingers at them as if they were his underlings. "Teyla's hand is injured, and I doubt that Ronon will be able to go fast with that leg of his—"

"I can make it," Ronon cut in, glowering at Rodney.

"No, Ronon," Teyla replied, placing forestalling fingers on his uninjured arm, knowing that the Satedan would push himself hard, possibly even cripple himself in the process, if he thought that getting faster to the Stargate would help save John. "I want you to be with the colonel. Besides, someone needs to watch over Rodney and John…" Her broken wrist throbbed with pain, making her voice tremble slightly. She tried to brush the pain to the back of her mind, knowing if she had to run back to the Stargate, her injured wrist would still be an impediment to her.

Ronon nodded, understanding the words that Teyla did not speak out aloud. After everything that had happened, they could not afford trust these people yet. However, Teyla saw his dark gaze go to her injured wrist as he frowned in concern. He was about to speak up when Rodney continued.

"Yes, well, I was about to suggest that perhaps Gwenderlo's people could help ensure that Teyla made it back to the Stargate safely."

"Yes, of course," the old woman replied. She now took in Teyla's broken wrist, "We also have healers who can set the bone first…"

"No!" hissed Teyla abruptly, her wounded hand still curled protectively around her chest. "There is no time, I would rather leave now." The more time they wasted, the less time John had.

However, Ronon was moving, grabbing Rodney's bag-pack and taking out some field bandages. "You'll go faster with your injury bandaged and immobilised," Ronon grunted. Before Teyla could argue, the Satedan was moving swiftly, efficiently wrapping up her wounded limb before tying a sling around her shoulders, placing her wounded hand close to her chest and immobilising it with further bandages. Teyla and Rodney were amazed at how fast the Satedan worked, but then Ronon was a runner for seven years and a warrior to boot. It meant that he often had to swiftly tend to his own injuries while on the run. By the time he had finished, Teyla knew that she could travel fast without doing further damage to her injured limb.

"Thank you, Ronon," Teyla said, giving him a little Athosian head bow, grateful for his help.

Ronon gave her a curt smile. "Just get Beckett here in time." He then turned to take over from Rodney, by holding the firm pressure bandage over Sheppard's bleeding side.

As Teyla got ready to leave, Gwenderlo ordered several of her people to follow her to ensure that the Athosian made it safely back to the Stargate.

Rodney wanted to suggest that the natives carried Teyla, maybe at a running pace, back to the Stargate. However, one look at the Athosian and he kept his mouth shut. Knowing Teyla, the Athosian won't appreciate the suggestion at all.

Teyla cast one last look at John's unconscious too pale and flickering form before shooting a farewell glance at Rodney and Ronon. "I will be back with Dr Beckett as soon as I can," she assured them.

Rodney and Ronon both nodded. "We know you will," Rodney replied, "We'll make sure that Sheppard's still here when you get back, even if I have to drag his wiry ass back from wherever it is, kicking and screaming."

Teyla nodded and smiled at Rodney's words, knowing that the scientist and the colonel were close friends. She knew that McKay would do his best and it was all that they could ask. As she left hurriedly with an escort of armed natives, she prayed to the spirit of the Ancestors that John would survive and that she would be able to get Beckett there in time.

-oOo-

Rodney looked at the old woman and said, "Okay, so what do I do now?"

Gwenderlo rummaged around her woven bag, removing a black stone. "Lie down, next to the Chosen One's body. Close your eyes and try to empty your mind of all thoughts. Now, hold my hand and I will lead you to the mind of the Chosen One."

Rodney did as the old woman instructed. It was difficult trying relax his body and make himself comfortable on the hard ground. When he was settled, he looked at the old woman's open palm extended towards him while holding the Seeing Stone. He wondered whether it worked similarly to the common-looking stone-like artefact that Jack O'Neill had once innocently touched in Daniel's lab at SCG. It ended up with O'Neill sharing life experiences with a barber on Earth. He had read about that from the reports at SCG.

"Rodney? Are you ready?" he heard the old woman ask a little impatiently as he hadn't closed his eyes or accepted her extended hand yet. He noticed that her other hand was placed on Sheppard's forehead as she got ready to link the three of them together.

"Huh? Oh yes, yes," he hurriedly replied as he clutched her hand, noting that the stone felt unnaturally cold under the palm of the old woman's warm hand. Then he closed his eyes and tried to clear his mind by thinking of nothing but clear blue skies…

-oOo-

He didn't know how it occurred but suddenly he felt a sensation of falling or perhaps it was flying, he wasn't certain which but it sure felt like some creepy out of body experience. The closest description he could give it was perhaps the feeling he had when travelling through a Stargate. When he next opened his eyes, he found himself standing in a place that was way too strange and indescribable to put into words.

The colours, lights and constantly moving and morphing objects spinning about everywhere made him dizzy. Suddenly he felt a firm grip on his hand, anchoring him to the here and now.

"We are seeing what the Chosen One sees," Gwenderlo's said solemnly to him.

"What? Do you mean we're in Sheppard's head?" Rodney asked in surprise.

"In a manner of speaking, but we should be able to see him here too …" the old woman replied.

"Hmm, why does that not instil confidence in me?" Rodney wondered out loud. "So, where is Sheppard?"

"_There,_" Gwenderlo pointed towards a cluster of silver-blue and gold lights. Rodney had to look hard before he spotted any sign of Sheppard. Then he saw him. Amidst the lights, he spotted what appeared to be a barely recognisable golden human-shaped form, glowing brightly amidst the smaller lights. From where he was, Sheppard truly reminded him of the Human Torch from Fantastic Four.

"Oh crap…" he gulped to himself, knowing that if Sheppard was already half transformed into a lighted being, and that didn't mean an Ascended being, in this strange other dimension, he knew that he'll have a tough time bringing the colonel back.

-oOo-

TBC

Still like?


	14. Tiny balls of fire!

Author note: Happy Easter greetings to everyone who celebrated it. Sorry for the late update as I've been busy with Easter and all, and wasn't motivated to continue this. Anyway, I finally got there in the end. Thanks for the reviews.

**Chapter 14 – Tiny balls of fire!**

After the old woman had left him, he breathed a sigh of relief and continued to look at the lights. The lights were swirling around him, caressing and inviting, asking him to be one with them. He was immersed in them, their warmth, their strange melodic song that swam and danced like some free-spirited sprites, making circles and somersaults all round him. He felt himself changing, becoming one with the lights, the glow around his body getting brighter like the brightest star. Soon the person whom he had been would be gone; soon he would be here forever. It could happen now, if he so wished. But deep down, something held him back, some subconscious part of him that was wary; some inner voice that tingled in warning, saying, '_This was not right_'; something that said '_Wait, do not go yet, he will come._'

So he waited for who or what he didn't know.

He did not know how much time had passed between now and then but after a while he became weary of waiting. He was tired, drained and he wanted this to end. Once he joined fully with the lights he knew that he would never be the same again; that he could never return to his old life again – the one which was slowly fading away. Soon, that life would cease to exist.

At first, the little nagging voice in the deep corner of his mind started out small; he could ignore it, not even realise that it was there. However, after a while, it began to feel like a buzzing fly, or a mosquito, becoming more annoying, more distracting, wanting more of his attention. Soon he became more aware of the voice and felt its presence in his head. It reminded him of another life, of another time, and had a ring of familiarity to it. It was hard to focus what the voice was telling to him for the lights entranced him still.

"_Chosen One! Chosen One!_" they called him. "_Soon, you'll be one with us! Soon, you'll be part of us! Rejoice Chosen One, rejoice!_"

Whenever the lights tried to get his attention, the voice persisted harder, demanding that he listen to it, refusing to give up, getting louder and louder in an acerbic tone until it finally broke through the fog in his mind and he heard the words shouting:

"_Sheppard! Dammit! Listen! You do NOT belong here! Stop staring at those friggin' lights and snap out of it! Geez, of all people in the world, I never figured you to be like a little kid to be taken in by sparkling lights! After all, you were never one of clowns, so why be taken in by sparkly, pretty lights? Sure, they're pretty enough – but they can also be down-right dangerous! Hello?! Remember clowns, Sheppard?! Meant to be funny but are actually down-right scary?! Your words Sheppard, not mine, but I must say that I agree with you there! Same with these lights! They're dangerous, Sheppard! You DON'T belong with them!_"

Something clicked inside him. That _voice_, it was a male voice, he realised - a caustic male voice that sounded angry, concerned and frustrated all at the same time. Once again, the sense of familiarity of the voice flooded through him. He frowned, knowing that he should _know _the voice, that he should _recognise _the voice… His mind tried to grasp at the memory… It was someone whom he had known in his other life… Someone who had known him… A memory stirred and his name sluggishly claimed him once again: _Sheppard…, John Sheppard…., Lt Colonel John Sheppard_…

A stranger's voice had once told him that that was his name - an old woman's voice. Somehow he had forgotten it but now the name pulled back at his consciousness, wanting him to claim it back for himself.

"_Sheppard, can you hear me?! Do you even know me?! Do you freakin' recognise me? Sheppard, PLEASE… snap out of it!_"

The voice persisted, the voice refused to stop speaking, the voice nagged at him with a stubborn will of its own… As much as the lights tried to lure him into their mysterious world, the voice refused to give up on him either, speaking of things in his past, things that he did, events that had occurred, all of which he appeared to have forgotten. The voice rambled on and the voice didn't care that it rambled. All it cared about was that he listened. And soon, he found himself subconsciously listening to it… When the voice started to speak about his responsibility, how much he was still _needed _where he was, he paused and took note, unable to stop himself from hearing the words that were stubbornly aimed at him.

The lights seemed to sense his distraction for they too seemed distracted. He noticed that some of the lights began to move away from him to focus on the one speaking. At their movements, he slowly turned his gaze to follow their direction, eventually finding the speaker…

"_Sheppard?! Are you listening?! We still need you, dammit! Atlantis still needs you! Heck, the entire Pegasus galaxy still needs you! Our fight with the wraith isn't over yet, we still need you to lead us against the Pegasus galaxy's version of intergalactic vampires. You still have a responsibility to … Ow! Shoo! Go away, you friggin' lighted bugs!! Ow! That HURT damnit!_"

At the voice's shouts of pain, something within him awoke; a need to protect … A name suddenly popped into his mind as he made out the figure of the man standing a few paces from him. There was also another smaller, older figure, wearing some strange headwear, standing next to the one who was speaking. He ignored the smaller female but instead focused his attention on the male. Recognition formed: He _knew _this one…

"_Rod-ney…?!_" he whispered the name, the name sounding all too familiar in his mind. _McKay… Dr Rodney McKay… scientist, astrophysicist, pain-in-the-ass, friend… _

Blue eyes, blue as the sea … a sea that held a floating city… turned to look at him and the eyes widened with hope. The forms that stood before him shone with multi-coloured auras, but somehow, the blue stood out amidst everything else... It was the only thing that he knew was correct, the only thing that was familiar…

"_Sheppard? It's about freakin' time you recognised me! I've been talking my head off and it's getting a little tiring having a one-sided conversation! I was beginning to think that you weren't listening to a word I've said… But yes, yes! It's me! Rodney! Rodney McKay! Now stop turning into a human torch and come back with … OW!_" the scientist yelled out again as he started to flap at the lights that were buzzing too close now, hitting his flesh with a sizzle.

John noticed that the silver-blue lights had changed their colours to an angry, reddish hue. They were now buzzing around Rodney, striking at him, and with each strike, they seemed to let out an electrical discharge making the man yelp in pain. The old woman beside him was also trying to wave the lights away from them. But the lights were protective of their own; the lights did not want the Chosen One to leave them.

"_Leave! Leave!_" he heard the lights say to the two who were not meant to be there. "_Chosen One is ours! Ours! Chosen One should be here! Here! Chosen One should stay… Stay!!_"

Another wave of attack stung the man again with him yelping out another "_Ouch!" _while glaring angrily at them "_Sheppard! Do you mind telling the little balls of fire to stop stinging me?! I'm the good guy here! For heaven's sake, can't you friggin' remember who you are?! Crap! Get away you friggin' lighted bugs!_ _I KNEW I should have brought bug spray with me!_" More flapping hands waved about, but they didn't seem to have any effect on the lights. _"Stop zapping at me, I'm NOT your dinner! Sheppard! Help me out here!!_"

The need to protect grew stronger, almost overwhelming him… He somehow _knew_ that the individual who currently stood before him had saved his life numerous times before – not only his life but others too, those who resided in a floating city in the sea. _Atlantis_, the name formed in his mind. Scattered memories started to tumble through his mind….

_Major, think where we are in the solar system._ They were the first words that this man had spoken to him when they first met. He had obeyed and his life had changed forever… More memories returned: of experiences that he had shared with this man, their arguments, their bantering, their friendly games, their fights, their turns at saving each other lives…. That resonated a deep feeling inside him, and with it he started to remember Earth, Pegasus galaxy, Colonel Sumner, Elizabeth Weir, Carson Beckett, Teyla Emmagan, Ronon Dex, Major Lorne…_Wraith_... bugs... other people's names and faces started to tumble through his head now … Afghanistan, Antarctica… memories flowed through him like an unstoppable tap, making him stagger backwards from their onslaught. At the same time, to his horror, he noticed that the lights were now attacking Rodney more viciously, like little red fireflies, burning him with their little stings while Rodney yelped out more in pain.

"_Leave! Leave!" _the lights sang out to Rodney, but John was uncertain whether Rodney could even hear or understand them as he cringed against their attacks. _"Leave the Chosen One alone! He is ours! Ours! The Chosen One is ours!"_

Anger flared alongside the need to _protect _Rodney... John instinctively knew without a doubt that his friend was here because of him… to _save _him… and it was up to him to save Rodney now…

"_Stop harming him!!!" _he ordered the lights, projecting his will upon them as rage suddenly erupted deep within him. "_I am NOT the Chosen One! I am John Sheppard and I do NOT belong here!_" he declared to the lights, claiming his name for his own. He saw the lights pause, sensed that the lights felt surprised and confused at his declaration. They left Rodney and the old woman and flew back to him again, twirling round him again, they colours turning silver-blue and golden once more…

"_Chosen One! Chosen One!_" they cried out again. "_Stay! Stay!_" They sensed that he did not wish to be with them anymore. They did not want him to go...

John shook his head as he gaze narrowed, he knew what he had to do now. Without a word, he reached out and claimed back what they had stolen from him, the golden lights that were a part of him. They could not resist him, so they poured into him at a rush, almost too much, all at the same time; it almost seemed painful to receive so much all at once. His sense of self returned, his identity, more of his memories, making him realise who he was; making him realise that he was John Sheppard, making him realise that he should not be here…

As if from faraway, he heard Rodney shout out his name, wanting to go to him, but an old woman's voice held back his friend….

"_No, Rodney! Do NOT touch him! You have done what you came to do! The Chosen One is Sheppard again! We must return to our world now… Hurry! Before it's too late, before we are both trapped here! There is nothing that you can do for him now, live or die, he has chosen his path and there is no return now…_"

"_What…?! What do you mean?!_" he heard Rodney gasp out in panic; then he heard no more as the old woman grabbed Rodney's arm and they vanished from sight and his mind was empty of their presence. Suddenly there was pain inside of him, intensifying, growing like a living serpent, he threw his head back and screamed knowing that he was in serious trouble...

-oOo-

TBC

Please review if you want a faster update!


	15. Home sweet home

Author's note: Okay, this is so not my fault! The system did_** not** _allow me to upload any new file for days now and I got this chapter completed really early for you guys, like about 4 days ago! Anyway, hope that you enjoy...

**Chapter 15: Home sweet home **

He was flung back! Back into the world of the living, back to where his team was waiting for him, only to wake up to a world of dazzling mind blowing pain. There was pain everywhere! Fiery pain in his side, in his chest, in his lungs and in his shattered arm. He was in agony, worse than anything he had experienced in his life. He screamed until his lungs were raw. He felt hands going towards him, trying to offer him comfort and support, but there was no comfort to be had. The nightmare seemed as if it would never end. There were people calling his name, asking him to focus on them.

He opened his eyes, he saw frightened faces of Rodney and Ronon, trying to hold him down, the Satedan was holding a firm grip on his bleeding side that seemed to tear through him like a red hot poker digging into his insides… Rodney called his name, asking him to focus on him instead, the scientist's blurred swimming face looking anxious amidst his rapid breathing. Amidst Rodney's frantic words, he heard the scientist say, "Oh thank God, your eyes are no longer blue!"

Suddenly there was a PuddleJumper flying overhead, he wondered what the PuddleJumper was doing there. He tried to focus his mind, he tried his best to be coherent, but it was next to impossible to ignore the pain… or his body's trembling, it was getting harder to breathe… it was getting cold, black dots started to break out in his field of vision. He knew that he was losing consciousness again. He started to cough and he felt something wet flow from his lips as his chest erupted with explosive agony. There were panicked shouting, someone was calling Carson to get here quickly. It took him a moment to realise that it was Rodney who was doing the shouting. It was too damn loud, hurting his ears; he wished that Rodney would yell softer…

He felt the vibration of something heavy landing on the ground close by, he heard the sound of running feet. Then hands left him and he felt a new set of hands that were poking and plodding him again, touching the source of his agony. Scattered and confused images flitted through his pain racked brain: of Rodney's and Ronon's worried faces, of Carson in a hazmat suit… of Teyla standing further away looking concern… of strangers looking anxiously down at him…

"Rest easy, Colonel! You'll be fine," he heard a familiar Scottish brogue say. A pressure cuff was placed over his upper arm and something was attached to his finger. Commands were shouted across from him, it was difficult to focus on what the voices said as a roaring began to fill his ears. The pain within him intensified and he felt confused. He tried to get up, tried to fight against the hands that were attempting to hold him down. There were more shouts, calls for help, some of the shouts were directed at him but he was too confused and frightened to pay them any heed. He struggled further, but that only made the pain worse. His eyes opened but all he saw were bright lights, a blur of figures surrounding him and heard more roaring in his ears.

He could hear a pounding in his heart feeling as if it was about to explode. He was cold, but despite it, perspiration poured out from him like crazy, he knew that he had to escape. He didn't know where he was, he just knew that he needed to get out of there. He tried to fight against them but his limbs suddenly felt like lead now. It took him even longer to realise that there was a pair of muscular arms restraining him, securing him down to the ground so that he couldn't fight anymore, so that he couldn't harm himself or others. He wondered when that had happened. There was something dripping down on him and in a daze, he stared at it, almost hypnotised by the warm red drops dripping onto his jacket. He followed the trail of the red drops to see that it came from the rash-filled arm of the one who held him down. He looked into the dark eyes of someone with dreadlocks. "You'll be okay, Sheppard, just hand on… let Beckett do his job," the warrior told him.

He nodded. His mind felt hazy and he felt something cold being swabbed on his arm, then a needle plunged into his uninjured arm as something cool hit his veins. His muscles relaxed and his vision became darker. With a flutter of his eyelids, he sank into the darkness, welcoming the call of the black abyss.

-oOo-

Feeling came back to him again slowly, almost like an awakening dream. John wondered where he was until he opened his eyes and saw the familiar ceiling overhead and the reassuring beeps of the machines that he was attached to. Oh yeah, infirmary. Somehow, knowing that he was back in Atlantis again was comforting. Everything felt fuzzy, he didn't really feel like moving but his throat felt dry and raw and he must have made a sound.

There was a dark shadow sitting on the infirmary chair close by his bed. "John?" a familiar woman's voice asked. "Are you awake? How are you feeling?"

_Elizabeth_ He recognised the voice. The shadow moved and he heard the woman tap her earpiece softly, saying, "Carson, John's awake."

The shadow moved and she reached across to flick on the light switch above his bed. For an instance, the light was too bright, and he winced. "Sorry," Elizabeth muttered softly as she quickly toned it down to a dim level but enough for her to see him. "Here, Carson said that you might be thirsty when you awoke,"

He blinked seeing that she had a plastic container of ice-chips ready for him; a plastic teaspoon held before his mouth with an ice chip in it. He opened his lips and accepted it, feeling it ease the soreness of his burning throat. He blinked and nodded his thanks. When he finally tried to speak, he was surprised by the weakness in it.

"H'w's Rodn'y, T'yla n Ron'n?" his speech, he realised was slurred. He must be on Carson's happy drugs as he could not feel any pain now. Once, he recalled, all he had experienced was pain; fiery, burning pain.

Elizabeth smiled down at him. "Rodney, Teyla and Ronon are sleeping at the moment. They're in infirmary beds next to yours. You really had your team worried about you, John. They refused to rest until Carson assured them that you are going to be okay, but even then, they were still waiting for you to wake up…," Elizabeth moved her head closer to his and whispered in a conspirator's tone, "but Carson slipped something into their IV's lines, sneaky fella that he is."

John smiled at that news; it was just like the Scotsman to do something like that. All for the good of his patients, of course. She moved slightly away, straightening, her arms folding across her chest, speaking now in a slightly disapproving tone. "Broken limbs, bullet wounds and an allergic reaction… one thing is certain, John Sheppard - your team certainly know how to get themselves into trouble," there was a pause, before she continued, "just like their team leader," she added with a smile. "But Carson assures me that they're going to be fine."

He felt Elizabeth watching him, scrutinising him intently.

"You're going to be fine too, John," Elizabeth said softly. Her hand reached for his upper arm, squeezing it in a caring and encouraging manner. "They told me what happened on the planet, how we almost lost you. You gave us quite a scare, John." There was concern in her voice, but also relief before her hand moved away.

John gave her a weak smile; he decided that her bedside manner was definitely improving. His team was all right, he was going to be all right; he could rest easy now. Suddenly, his eyelids felt heavy and he felt the lull of sleep pull at him.

"_John?_"

He forced his eyelids to open once again to see Elizabeth gazing at him now in a stern manner. The look surprised him; he wondered what he had done to deserve it.

"Next time you decide to turn into the Human Torch with super hero powers and all, John … Please…_Don't_."

The smile was still on his lips when he nodded. Carson arrived a minute later to check up on his patient, but by then he was already asleep dreaming that he was Mr Fantastic leading the team of Fantastic Four…

-oOo-

TBC

Thank you so much for the reviews! They were all greatly appreciated! Virtual chocolates are being sent to all who had reviewed! Comfort scenes for Shep coming up next and tying up all the puzzles.


	16. Epilogue

Author's note: Here we go, the final chapter! It took a little longer than expected, as while editing it, I ending up writing more! Why is my final chapter always the longest, I wonder? ;D

**Chapter 16: Epilogue**

Something tickled his nose. John tried to brush it off. There was a soft, giggling sound and a feather-like thing touched the tip of his nose again. This time he popped open his eyes to see a blue feather tickling his nose. That said feather was tied to a long pole, held by one bored scientist seated on the bed adjacent to his on the left.

Rodney was currently wearing a pair of green scrubs, holding the pole with a bandaged right hand (Sheppard recalled that it was the same one that had been injured by the arrow) and mischievous grin plastered on his face. He was cradling a tablet PC with his other arm and his ankle was elevated and bandaged in a cast.

"Well! It was about time you woke up, sleepy head! Two days in bed and already I was getting bored watching you sleep!" Rodney exclaimed.

He looked down and saw that his right arm had several IV ports and tubes still attached to him and that he was wearing a pair of green scrubs too, which he was pleased about, as it was _way _better than a hospital gown. His left arm was in a cast supported by a sling. From the bandages alone, he knew that it was broken. There was the memory of him impacting a tree and later falling on the hard ground. He inwardly winced, wondering which impact attributed to the broken bone. His chest too was tightly wrapped with bandages, as was his side. However, he felt almost no pain, so figured that he must still be on Carson's strong drugs.

"McKay…" he heard Ronon say from across the other side of his bed on his right. "If Beckett catches you disturbing Sheppard, you'll be in trouble!"

"_Who me?_" Rodney replied innocently. "I _wasn't_ doing anything!" he said as he waved his blue feather around and then hid it at the side of his bed.

Turning his head, he saw Ronon propped up, sitting on an infirmary bed with a bandaged leg and arm. Bullet wounds, he remembered, one given by him and one by Rodney. Hopefully, the Satedan was in a forgiving mood. As Ronon didn't look like he was going to kill them any time soon, he figured that both he and Rodney were safe from the Satedan's revenge.

Ronon noticed him eyeing him and seemed to sense what he was thinking about for he said, "Beckett said that they were flesh wounds, nothing serious."

"That's… good to know," John commented softly, feeling guilty and relieved at the same time.

"Not your fault," Ronon replied. "Better this than the alternative." There was a pause. "I couldn't control it." Ronon looked disturbed by this fact and Sheppard knew that he was thinking about the time he was under the influence of the Darkness.

_Which meant that he would have probably tried to kill me, if Rodney and I hadn't shot him to try to slow him down. _John recognised the Satedan's feelings of guilt a mile away; it was easy enough seeing that he was feeling the same way just a moment ago.

"Hey, Ronon," he said, making sure that he had eye contact with the big guy, "It's not your fault either."

The Satedan nodded. "Glad to see that you're okay, Sheppard." There was gratitude in the Satedan's eyes, something that he didn't see often.

The Colonel smiled back; he really didn't want Ronon blaming himself and he didn't need apologies.

"So Carson told us that you're going to be fine," Rodney finally spoke again, "but really, how are you feeling?"

John turned to look back at Rodney again. Despite the mischievous, cheeky and smug look that the scientist had on a moment ago, the blue eyes now generated nothing but concern. He considered how he felt and decided that he felt like himself again; there was no painful burning sensation inside him or feelings that he was changing and becoming something else. What he experienced now was the normal thing that a body felt when recovering from physical injuries, that is, tired, a little loopy from the pain meds, hurting still even though he couldn't feel much of it at present. However, one thing was certain, he felt one hundred percent John Sheppard, he knew who he was and where he wanted to be, which for the moment, was right here.

"What colour are my eyes, Rodney?" he asked instead.

The question took Rodney by surprise. "Hazel, why? Back to your usual eye colour again, thank God for that!"

John smiled. "Good, because that's the way I feel, I feel like myself again, which means I'll be fine."

Rodney thought about it and seemed satisfied by his reply. "Good, that's good, cos while you were playing Sleeping Beauty, we were served lunch and…" he turned around and picked something up from the other side of the table, "well, I saved some of it for you."

Rodney handed a plate over to John.

"Veal, Rodney? Isn't that one of your favourite food?" John asked looking a little surprised and feeling strangely touched by the gesture. Rodney was not one to share his food.

"Yes… well, seeing that it _is_ infirmary food, it actually tastes better than the ones that they make in the mess hall. I think they have different cooks and Carson is keeping the better chef for himself!" Rodney announced before taking a pause to look longingly at the said veal. "It, er… might gone a little cold while waiting for you to wake up. However, if you want, I could ask one of the nurses to heat it up for you."

John shook his head, "No, no, it's fine, Rodney. Though, I'm sure Carson would have instructed the nurses to give me something to eat if I asked, you really didn't need to save some for me…." Cold food didn't bother him; he had eaten worse while out in field missions. However, he wasn't sure whether his stomach was ready for solids yet and he wasn't feeling very hungry either so he figured that he must have been fed intravenously even though he didn't see any attached to him at present. But damn, the veal did look good. So, perhaps a little piece wouldn't hurt.

"Oh, unappreciative are we?" Rodney sounded a little offended. "Okay, then, pass it back then!" the scientist said as he tried reach out for the plate.

John swiftly moved it out of the way from Rodney's reach.

"I _didn't say _that I didn't want it, Rodney," he said, giving his friend a playful smirk. "In fact, it looks quite appetising." He gave the meat a sniff, eyed it and frowned suspiciously. "Is that a bite mark I see on this piece of steak, Rodney?"

Rodney had the courtesy to look embarrassed. "Well, er… you were taking too long to wake up and the veal was getting cold! After all, I had to test that… well, that it was cooked properly and all!"

"_Riiight _Rodney," John stretched his word in an obvious tone of disbelief. Then licking his lips, he cut a tiny piece and took a bite from it, savouring the taste. He didn't feel nauseas as he chewed and finally swallowed the meat, which he thought was a good sign.

"Well?" Rodney asked eagerly, stretching forward slightly to look at the veal on the plate and at Sheppard. "How is it?"

John shrugged as he continued to chew slowly. He loved winding the scientist up and he forced Rodney to wait. He finally gave the scientist a grin. "It's good Rodney, _really _good." And it was the truth too. Rodney was right; the veal actually tasted better than the food they normally served in the mess hall. It was also highly unusual for them to have veal on the menu and he wondered whether Carson had made extra effort to ensure that the scientist had his favourite food served. He heard a strange sound from Rodney and looked up.

"Is that your stomach growling, Rodney?" he shot his friend an amused look, raising one eyebrow as he held another small piece of tender meat on his fork.

"Hey, can I help it if I'm still hungry?" Rodney said defensively. Sheppard suddenly realised what Rodney had done.

"Okay…, except for that one bite you took from this, you didn't eat any veal, did you?"

Rodney licked his lips and looked guilty as hell.

"Rooodney? What _did _you eat?"

"Salad! Okay, damn it! I ate salad, potatoes and some bland vegetables! Bleah! Food that my sister and her family would happily consume, but really, not for me!"

"So why didn't you eat this then?" John wondered curiously.

"Well…," Rodney stammered and look away embarrassed now.

"There was only one," Ronon said from the other side.

"What?" John turned, looking surprised at the Satedan and not understanding.

"There was only one piece of veal. Beckett told McKay that it was the last piece the cook had."

"So what did you have, Ronon?"

"Chicken."

The colonel looked down at his piece of cold veal steak, which was really Rodney's meal. Then he took the knife and sliced it into a quarter and three quarters, saving the larger portion for the scientist. He wasn't feeling very hungry anyway, but he certainly appreciated the gesture. Besides, the veal was tender and delicious and he felt certain that his share would be enough for him.

"What are you doing, Sheppard?" Rodney asked curiously.

"I never did thank you for saving my ass back there. If it weren't for you, I'll be flying about as a lighted bug down on that planet. You deserve half of it."

"What? Only _half?_"

"Well, okay, three-quarters. The rest is mine, after all this _was _a gift, was it not?"

Rodney smiled happily, remaining content with the offer while licking his lips.

As he ate his share of veal, John wondered whether it was Athosian veal. Speaking of which, he wondered where Teyla was as he hadn't seen her around since he woke up.

"Sheppard, I have something for you too," Ronon said and John found himself handed a piece of blueberry pie. "Thought you might want dessert to go with the veal," the Satedan explained.

"Thanks guys," he said, feeling a warm glow form inside him. Rodney and Ronon would always clean everything off their plates during meals and _never _shared their food with anyone else. The fact that they had saved something for him spoke volumes and he could not stop himself from smiling broadly.

"Say, do any of you know where Teyla is?" he cleared his throat after a while and looked at the two members of his team.

"Oh, don't worry, she's fine," Rodney replied off-handedly as he accepted the plate of veal that John handed back to him. "Teyla's currently helping Carson get something."

"Oh?" John said, wondering what she and Carson were doing. His gaze now turned back to Rodney. He noticed that both Rodney and Ronon had spots on their skin but of a different kind. Rodney looked like he had a bad case of sunburn, with painfully red spots dotting his face and hand, while Ronon looked like he had a bad case of the hives with rashes still covering most of his body. Occasionally, he would see the Satedan sneaking a scratch or two even though he undoubtedly _knew_ that Carson would have given the warrior instructions _not _to scratch.

"By the way, Rodney, what happened to you?" John asked curiously, finally turning back to the scientist. The last he recalled, Rodney was spot free.

"Oh, _this?_" Rodney pointed to his face, now making a face. "All your fault!" he exclaimed suddenly, his tone no longer displaying concern but returned to the normal snarky Rodney whom he knew.

"Hey!" he protested, "How's it my fault?!" Sure, he appreciated Rodney's generous shared lunch and all, but no way was he going to accept the blame for this.

"Your little-" Rodney raised two little fingers and wiggled them up and down, "-'lighted friends' gave them to me while they were attacking me. Carson says it's a severe case of sunburn where they struck me. I _knew _I should have slapped on sun-block SPF 100+ that morning!"

John remembered the red lights zapping Rodney. "Well, _I _didn't ask them to zap you!" he added defensively, "But rather the opposite! I _asked_ them to _stop!_"

Rodney struck out his lower chin and gave him a stubborn wounded look. "Well, it doesn't matter… It's _still _your fault!" As he said it, Rodney took out the little blue feather attached to the long stick and began waving it at John again.

"Oh no, it _isn't!_" he retorted back, refusing to give in to Rodney.

Rodney opened his mouth and was about to argue back when Ronon started to scratch at his rashes before stating in a loud, grumpy tone, "What I don't get is how come you two didn't get the itches."

"I believe that I can answer that, Ronon," Carson interjected as he strode into the infirmary with Teyla by his side, rolling a large flat screen TV and a DVD player seated on a cabinet with wheels. John noticed that Teyla too spotted the same rashes as Ronon, and that her right wrist was in a cast. He remembered being the one to fracture her wrist and winced inwardly.

"John, it's good to see you awake. How are you feeling?" Teyla asked him, smiling at him warmly.

"I'm good," he replied, "and you?"

"I am well too, my injury is not serious," replied Teyla, before her smile faded slightly as she took in his bandages. He knew immediately what she was thinking about and that she was about to apologise to him.

"Teyla, what happened on the planet isn't yours or Ronon's fault," he said the words first before the Athosian could speak. As he had done with Ronon, he didn't need to hear an apology from Teyla.

Teyla gave him a smile filled with gratitude and John saw her eyes swim with emotion. "Thank you, John," she said solemnly, giving him a little Athosian head nod. "I am glad that you are well." She moved to fluff one of the pillows for him; expertly doing it one handed, leaving John amazed at her ability. He then bent forward slightly so that she could place it under his back and head. It felt so much more comfortable afterwards and he sighed happily as he leaned back against the support.

"Thanks, Teyla," he said, returning her smile. He turned to see Carson chiding Ronon and giving the Satedan a stern look when the doctor caught the big guy scratching.

"Didn't I give ye strict orders _not _to scratch, Ronon?! Do you want those rashes to open and become infected?! Why can't ye lads be more like Teyla here and do what you're told?"

"Hey! Don't bring us into this, Carson! Ronon's the one who broke the rule!" Rodney objected.

Ronon just grinned at the doctor but he did_ stop_ scratching.

"So…," John finally drawled, interested to know what the doctor had to say, "Why wasn't Rodney and I affected by the rashes?"

Carson turned back, left what he was doing and approached him. "It's good to see ye finally awake, Colonel. I was about to come and wake ya up myself if you hadn't woken up by now. How are ye feeling, lad? Are ye hungry? Would you like something to eat?"

John shook his head and smiled. "No doc, Rodney shared his meal with me. I'm fine."

Carson's gaze went to the scientist with a look of surprise. "Oh, did he now? Well now, that's very generous of you Rodney, are you sure you'll feeling all right?" This query was now addressed to the scientist.

The scientist looked embarrassed. "Except for a broken ankle _and _a bad case of sunburn, of course I'm feeling all right! What? Can't a guy be nice?!"

Carson shook his head and smiled. Sometimes Rodney could be full of surprises. "Of course you can, Rodney. It's just we don't often see that part of you."

Rodney just harrumphed. "Well, just don't get used to it as it's not becoming a habit!"

Carson chuckled as he took out a penlight from his pocket and turned back to John to shine it into the colonel's eyes.

"Ow! Do you _always_ have to do that, doc?"

Carson smiled. "Good pupil reactions, no sluggishness, no blue eyes…"

John winced. "Oh… so, you heard about that, huh?"

"Aye," Carson Beckett replied, his eyes twinkling with good humour. "But I'll say that you're on your road to recovery, Colonel. We got back your blood-work results, and I'm glad to say that everything is returning to normal again. The rest will just take time to heal, barring that you don't over-exert yourself and do what your doctor orders."

John smiled at the news. "Good to hear, Carson. Now, how about answering my question?"

"Well, the reason you and our friend, Rodney here, weren't affected by the rashes is because you and McKay have the ATA gene. Somehow it made you two immune to it."

Rodney beamed and snapped his fingers. "Of course! I _knew _there had to be a reason why I wasn't affected! Hmm, I'm beginning to like the benefits of gene therapy, other than being able to use cool Lantean technology of course!"

"Aye, but it's not all good Rodney, as Colonel Sheppard can attest," Carson added as he straightened up and reaching out to grab a blood pressure cuff and placing it around John's arm. "It's also the reason why you had reacted so adversely to the alien drug as you did, Colonel. I tested some of properties of the alien drug that Rodney had retrieved from the device and I must say that the premises of it is fascinating, especially how fast it breaks down the human DNA changing it to something else…. But with the ATA gene, you were able to counter some of its effects and do more than any normal person would have been able to do. Of course the downside meant that you must have suffered greatly as you were conscious the entire time while your body went through the traumatic effects of the change…"

"_Please_… don't remind me," John shuddered, not wanting to remember the pain and the agony that he had been in.

"Of course, I'm sorry, laddie," Carson stated softly, understanding.

"At least you weren't conscious when Beckett brought out his big needles!" Rodney complained as he rubbed at his still sore butt. "_We _were _not _so lucky."

"So the rashes weren't contagious?" John asked looking up.

"I suspect that they originally were especially from what I've heard from the natives on that planet," replied Carson. "But after the energy creature was destroyed, the viral properties of whatever was causing those rashes changed to something more harmless… Don't ask me how, I wasn't there. I only heard about it. So what Teyla and Ronon have now is a bad case of the hives. Their bodies' reacting like they've touched poison Ivy, that's all. In a few days time, they should clear up."

Teyla and Ronon both smiled at this news.

"In the meantime," Teyla spoke up, holding out several DVDs as she went back to the TV cabinet, "while, you're recovering, John, we thought that you would like to watch some movies." Carson smiled as he returned to roll the TV and position it in front of John's bed

"Yeah, make it like a movie marathon or something," added Rodney with a big grin on his face.

At that moment, Elizabeth popped in, carrying a large of popcorn bowl in her hands. "Are we ready?" she asked.

"Almost," Carson replied as he plugged in the TV.

"Good! Cos I don't want to miss it!" Elizabeth gave a wide smile as she placed the bowl of popcorn at the side of John's bed. "You'll looking better, John. How are you feeling?"

"Carson says I'm fine," he beamed a smile back at her. Actually, now that he was back in Atlantis surrounded by his friends again, he knew that he would be. His fingers went to the warm popcorn, placing a couple in his mouth. He noticed that this time his throat didn't feel so sore anymore.

"I'm glad to hear that," Elizabeth replied as she temporarily left to get herself a spare chair so that she could sit and watch the movies too.

"So," John asked, curiously. "What movies are we watching?"

At his question, he saw everyone smiling conspiringly.

"Rodney, Ronon and I selected a movie theme each," Teyla informed him with a polite smile.

"And?" John asked. He knew that something was up….

"Let's see," Rodney replied as he ticked his fingers off one by one, "We have … _Harry Porter_, Teyla's choice by the way, _Star Wars: The Phantom Menace_, Ronon's choice and _Babylon 5_, my personal favourite… See the pattern, Sheppard?"

John frowned. He was beginning to suspect what his team was up to but no way was he about to admit to it. "No. Is there one?" he quipped.

Rodney was not taken in by his display of innocence. "Oh, he _knows_," Rodney said looking around triumphantly as he picked up the blue feather and began waving it at John playfully. John scowled back, did his team _know _him that well?

John took another handful of popcorn. "Actually, I've been wondering. What the heck is that?!" he pointed to the blue feather that Rodney held in his hand, hoping to change the topic of conversation. Teyla in the meantime selected a DVD and placed it inside the player, before grabbing another empty chair for herself, placing it on the other side of John's bed between him and Ronon. Carson quickly followed suit. John wondered what movie she had decided to play first.

Rodney beamed at his question and John instantly knew that he had fallen into a trap.

"Oh, this little blue feather" Rodney asked innocently. "Well… it was given to us by that old woman, Gwenderlo, as a gift to the 'greatly honoured _Chosen One'_, plucked from the tail of a very rare humming bird on their world, so we were told." He sniggered then. "Actually, stop pretending, Sheppard, you know very well why we chose those movies. They all have similar themes in them: _Harry Porter:_ The 'Chosen One' only capable of beating Voldemort. _The Phantom Menace: _We have Anakin Skywalker, why another 'Chosen One' foretold by the Jedi prophecy to bring 'balance to the Force', _and _last but not least_, Babylon 5_, my personal favourite… Hehe! John Sheridan, prophesised by the Minbari to be 'The One'! And the best part, his name is 'John' too! Hah! _And_, did you notice that the first _three_ letters of his surname is _similar _to yours?! Now what's the coincidence of that, I ask, huh?! It's fated, you're the 'Chosen One'!"

If ever there was gloat on Rodney's face, it was now.

"Ha! Ha! Very _funny_ guys!" John made a face.

_Star Wars: The Phantom Menace _started. Everyone started to watch the show but when they reached the part of where Qui-Gon Jinn started to speak to Anakin about being the 'Chosen One', sniggering broke out.

"Oh _shut up_, guys!" John frowned, throwing another round of popcorn playfully at his team mates. All ducked under a rainfall of popcorn, except for Ronon who lifted his head and caught a few in his mouth.

It took him a while to realise that something was very wrong with this show's selection. "Hey! Anakin's the _bad _guy here, he's Darth Vader and he… well… loses _all_ his _limbs_ in Episode Three!" he squeaked. That Ronon had a dark streak of humour.

More laughter broke out. "Well, hopefully, _John_… that'll teach you _not _to go fulfilling prophesies of 'Chosen Ones'" Elizabeth leaned over with a wink and calming pat on his forearm.

"Actually, being the 'Chosen One' is not the problem, but going into the dark side is," Rodney replied, picking up the fallen popcorn scattered on his sheets and munching on them.

"What?!" John squeaked. "I defeated the Darkness remember? If anything I should be Luke Skywalker!"

"Ah, but remember lighted Bug boy?" Rodney retorted back.

"Oh…" John said as he suddenly got the joke. Yeah, if he had joined the lights he wouldn't have any body left, which meant no limbs. He suddenly burst out laughing. "Good one, Rodney," he chuckled.

"Actually Sheppard," Rodney replied, his tone suddenly turning more serious. "I just wanted to _thanks_. I know that if you didn't do what you did, _I_ would have been the one flying about like a lighted bug instead of you… and…"

John didn't allow Rodney to continue, he was just _glad _that Rodney _wasn't _the one to have the go through the pain that he had endured. He won't have wished it on his worse enemies and certainly _not _on Rodney. If he had to do it again; he would do the same thing. Of course, if he _really _had to do it again, he would rather be faster and not get injured himself in the process.

"Oh, shut up and eat your popcorn, Rodney. Besides, you _prevented _me from _being _lighted Bug boy." So saying, he tossed a handful of popcorn playfully at the scientist again.

As soft popcorn rained down on Rodney, he heard the indignant, "_Hey!_" before Rodney suddenly had the brilliant idea of doing what Ronon did before and tried to catch come of it in his mouth. "_I caught some!_" Rodney crowed in delight, munching happily away.

John popped more popcorn into his mouth and grinned. As he leaned back, he felt a twinge of pain from his numerous wounds but it was nothing compared to the warm glow that he was feeling at present. It felt good to be there watching movies with his team mates and friends. It felt good to be alive.

---

The End

P.S: I'm not sure whether veal is Rodney's favourite food, but I read that info from Wikipedia, so hopefully it's correct.  



End file.
